Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons
by imaweeaboo
Summary: [Co-author: hackslashbash][Cover Art: mintdesco] Tiamat. The 41st Supreme Being. The Last of Ainz Ooal Gown. What will she do when she's stuck in YGGDRASIL with Momonga? This is the story of her adventure, her new life in her most favorite place. This is the story of her home. OC, AU.
1. CHAPTER 1: The Weakest Dragon

**CHAPTER 1: Tiamat, The Weakest Dragon in YGGDRASIL**

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**hackslashbash: Reuploaded 7/11/2019**

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"Fuuuuck, I'm gonna be late!" Hannah Annafellowz hurriedly scampered towards the VR chair and immediately opened the game YGGDRASIL without changing from her flour dusted work outfit.

The game was only sixty minutes away from shutting down forever. If only the dust-storm was a little bit nicer, she could've made it back home three hours ago.

Quickly plugging herself into the neural-nano interface, a sense of nostalgia washed over her as she waited for the game to load. After all, it had been more than a month since she had last played. The amount of money, effort, and time she had spent on YGGDRASIL was certainly not something to scoff at.

After waiting for what seemed to be an eternity, the launch screen appears and she finally saw it.

Her masterpiece, Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons.

Tiamat was a red haired woman with amethyst colored eyes. Adorning her head were two antler-like horns and a delicate crystal fa-zan holding up part of her hair. She was equipped with a long, flowing crimson colored dress from the ancient Tang Dynasty. The dress flared outwards with long sleeves that gently fluttered in the virtual breeze, and a long ruby silk ribbon circled her hips and wrapped around her arms.

She was a sucker for ancient asian dresses. Sue her.

Admittedly, her avatar was a little bit mainstream, especially for people who were really into the fantasy genre. But who cared, she had always liked Dragons ever since she heard her Grandfather's tales of his Dungeons and Dragons adventures, a fantasy game from an era when technology was not as high tech as it was today.

From the first tale, she was absolutely smitten.

Of course the game itself was ancient, but she loved it regardless. Some of her favorite memories in life were when her Grandfather's eyes would sparkle every time she asked him about his favorite games back in the old days.

As she got older, she continued to reminisce over her Grandfather's sagas, and eventually she stumbled upon YGGDRASIL. A game large enough that anyone could mix and match their own character. Kinda similar to Dungeons and Dragons, just much more advanced.

There really were a lot of Dragon type characters in the game. Everywhere she looked, she saw players specializing from Sword Masters to Mages. But her Tiamat belonged to none of those categories.

Dragons with their high base stats were pretty easy to play, and players could actually level up their racial class and advance across a Dragon's age stages: Dragonling, Young Dragon, and Adult Dragon, and more. The stat bonuses grew higher as a player took on more racial classes, but in return, there was less room for min-maxing the character.

But no one in the game had actually bothered to fully invest into a tank role. She could understand why they choose not to. It was very disadvantageous since a player wouldn't have access to many physical or magical attacks, making solo-play extremely difficult. The defense mechanic in the game only allowed players to withstand attacks longer, and resist mechanic allowed them to, well, resist debuffs from other players and hazardous environments.

That was why her Tiamat was special.

When she first played the game, she maxed out her physical and magical defense, and then her resist. Weak monsters and low level Players couldn't even touch her. She didn't need high agility either because it only improved speed and dodge chance, stats she didn't need if she could just shrug off anything that was thrown at her.

On the other hand, it took awhile for her to improve her attack stats to the point where she was able to deal significant damage to other players; an issue that made the first few months of playing absolutely frustrating because of her abysmal damage output. That was until she evolved Tiamat from Old Dragon (a class that one received after you maxing Adult Dragon), to Ancient Dragon, then to Primordial Dragon.

It turned out that once a player went max on Primordial Dragon, they could unlock a God Beast racial class, which was only available when they unlocked and fully leveled all of their racial classes.

God Beast was apparently the level cap for Dragons and she was ecstatic when she realized that she was the first one to reach that racial class. She still remembered how she jumped around her small apartment for a full half an hour, and how she screamed with joy when she unlocked a secret class after she had accumulated and consumed an obscene amount of rare boss drops.

World Eater, named after the last boss in the Main Campaign.

Her new class allowed her to absorb attacks and return them with the same attack power her opponent had plus her own physical and magical attack. The only drawback was that she had to withstand eneher onslaughts for a certain amount of time without dying. Basically, only those who maxed out physical and magical defense could use that particular skill.

So ***ing meta.

This was the skill that she continually abused in boss battles and PvPs. And with it, she caught the eye of the heteromorph guild Ainz Ooal Gown.

Out of a stroke of pure luck, she managed to defeat their Paladin of Pure Silver, The World Champion; A title which could only be gained by the number one winner of their respective realm in PvP, Touch Me.

It was a painstakingly long process, and she would never be able to forget that moment, that combination of luck, disbelief, and awe.

Touch Me was ruthless. His build was basically a cross between a warrior and a tank. Even if she used World Eater, the damage was not critical because of his armor. One of the few reasons she had won was that the timer had run out before he was able to use World Break. Because PvP rules in YGGDRASIL stated that if the timer ran out, the Player with the highest HP would win the round.

It was pretty amazing to finally see someone who was kinda a tank, yet could dish out silly amounts of damage. After the match, she sent Touch Me a friend request, and was overjoyed when she saw that he had accepted.

Soon afterwards, the YGGDRASIL forum blew up with recordings of her PvP battle against Touch Me and she was given the title "The Weakest Dragon in YGGDRASIL".

She still remembered how epic it was, and how she had basked in the attention the community had given her. Perhaps she should've been offended over being called "The Weakest", but she didn't get mad over the title she was given because it was true. Tiamat had almost no points dedicated to physical or magical attack.

That was the first time she received the title 'World Guardian' at level 85.

After this, she was constantly targeted for PK's.

It wasn't just one player who PKed her. It would have been impossible for them to do so because of her build. Even Touch Me, one of the strongest three players in YGGDRASIL could only take away about sixty percent of her HP in the PvP before the timer ran out.

Three guilds; two human, and one elven guild created a coalition to PK her for fun. One of them had a maximum capacity of 50 players and all were fairly high ranking guilds. About 150 players ambushed her, and a video of her downfall was posted. There was even a separate forum dedicated to me getting PKed.

The community was so toxic and she remembered how particularly awful it was at the time because she was a solo player, and her level tanked to 70 within a month. Even a one level drop was massive. Every time she raised her level and skills, she would only get PKed which caused her to stop playing YGGDRASIL for a few months.

This soul-draining pattern continued, until one day she got an email from Touch Me, asking her why she was not enlisted in the next PvP event. She explained everything to him, from the forum, the community, and how she just stopped playing altogether.

The next reply she got from him was truly unexpected. He said he wanted to help her and he had only one question that she should answer truthfully. She didn't see how he could help her with this question since he asked her what she did for a living, but she answered anyways.

"I'm an owner of the bakery and café Pâtisserie La œillet." she typed in. He only replied with 'Noted.' and 'Please look forward to her next message in the next three days.'

Pâtisserie La œillet was a bakery and cafe for the elite because as the world became more polluted and toxic, stuff like organic bread or coffee became more scarce. Rich people with absurd amounts of money would want to get a sense of normalcy, and that's where she raked in all the money. She would provide, as long as they could pay for it.

As promised, in three days she suddenly received an invitation to join the guild Ainz Ooal Gown, and her first response was '_What the actual ***?_'

Ainz Ooal Gown was one of the top five guilds in YGGDRASIL at the time, and the hardest guild to join. Basically a guild for the elite, all the players in the guild were hardcore players who were masters of various specializations, moreover, Ainz Ooal Gown had the most number of World Items in YGGDRASIL and had never been defeated by anyone.

So why the hell did this prestigious guild want her to join?

She thought at first that it was a prank, or the Guild Leader may have misclicked the 'Invite' button, but there was no one on her friend's list who was a member of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Except for one.

Soon after, she received a message from Touch Me, saying that she had been accepted to join the guild Ainz Ooal Gown. Not wanting to waste this massive opportunity, she pressed 'YES', and was immediately transported to a huge round table where the other 40 members sat. Players that she assumed were members of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Immediately after she arrived, she was bombarded with messages like "Congratulations!" or Friend Requests from members of Ainz Ooal Gown.

A voice from her right pops up in her ears, which shocked her for a bit because she never had to use those features before.

It was the voice of a young adult, "Hello and welcome Tiamat-san, I am Momonga, and I'm the guild leader of Ainz Ooal Gown."

"Hello." she answered timidly. "If I may ask, what the hell?" she asked breathlessly, which earned a few snickers and giggles from other guild members.

Then they explained that Ainz Ooal Gown was created to help the heteromorphic race, and PK all the human or demi human races who discriminated against the heteromorphic players. Apparently it was hard to enter the guild because the players were more focused on min-maxing their characters and it appeared that each player had their own lore.

They've had their eyes on her ever since she defeated Touch Me, even though she claimed it was all luck because Touch Me hadn't activated his World Break skills. The others said that the fact that she clipped away more than seventy percent of his HP proved that the min-maxing of her character worked in her favor.

After the hub died down, she was bombarded with questions from the pink slime tank, Bukubukuchagama, about her build. Ulbert asked how on earth was it like to be defeated by three guilds. Peroroncino asked about her cup size and immediately received a slimey slap from his sister.

That was how she joined the guild.

After that, YGGDRASIL became her sole source of entertainment, as she built bonds with the guild and slowly began to enjoy the craziness around her. They helped her raise her level to 100 and to maximize her character. Before she knew it, the guild became her second home.

But then reality hit.

A few years after she joined, the number of active guild members dwindled down as they found more important things to do IRL. She could understand that, and was not angry about it. Because in the end YGGDRASIL was just a game, it was impossible for them to be stuck in something that didn't even exist.

Despite all that, Momonga stayed. She played with him more, and got to know him better. She even created an IRL event at her bakery since they wanted to know what bread and coffee tasted like, and it worked in her favor because she wanted to check up on them.

Only the nine original members showed up. The rest apparently had moved on with YGGDRASIL, or reality caught up to them. Some didn't even reply to her e-mails to meet up.

The IRL Bakery event became a yearly event for Ainz Ooal Gown members, those who wanted to show up anyways, or those who wanted free bread and coffee.

Slowly but surely, the game was dying; people were losing interest in the game due to the complete cessation of updates or even patches.

Then, there were only two active members in Ainz Ooal Gown. Tiamat and Momonga.

Momonga often told her how sad and angry he was that their friends had abandoned them, but she always told him the opposite and that he needed to be more understanding. To her, Ainz Ooal Gown was home, the other members were just away for now, but they will always have a home to return to.

They continued on playing, until one day a post showed up on the YGGDRASIL forum on December 1, 2138.

"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Today, the Developers have made a difficult decision to shutdown YGGDRASIL DMMO-RPG as the game is no longer in line with the newest technology, and it's getting more difficult to update the game. The game will shut down on January 1, 2139.

Thank you for playing YGGDRASIL."

Just a few hours later, the devs made another post regarding the opening of YGGDRASIL II, with newer technology and features. But everyone would have to start from scratch, which meant all their hard work and efforts would not live to see another day.

Not long after that, Momonga sent an e-mail to every member of Ainz Ooal Gown to stay until the shut down of the game.

And here she was, scrambling over her unmovable loading screen, and with only 55 minutes away from when the game would be shutting down.

After a few minutes, she finally entered into the game, and teleported directly to the meeting table. Only Momonga was sitting there at the large table, an Overlord, all by himself.

She wanted to cry for Momonga. She truly did. After knowing him for a few years now, she knew that YGGDRASIL was everything for him. He poured his heart and soul into thie game. Even though he never told anyone, she knew he spent the majority of his paycheck on YGGDRASIL instead of taking care of his basic necessities, a fact that had always worried her. Almost a third of his life was dedicated to YGGDRASIL. Imagine then how he would feel, seeing the forum post from the developers about the game shutting down.

No. She shook her head IRL, this wasn't the time for pity party. Tonight she was here to celebrate their efforts and bonds, to celebrate the guild and its achievements.

Crying could be done later.

"Momo-chan!" she cheerfully spoke into the microphone. Using voice actor tricks from Bukubukuchagama to make herself sound as happy as possible, "I'm sorry I'm late, I got held up because of the weather."

"Tiamat-san! I'm so glad I could see you before the game is shutting down, and it's fine! I'm really happy you could come."

That's good, from the tone of his voice, he really was happy to see her.

"Am I the only one here?" she asked slowly, afraid it would destroy his good mood.

"Herohero-san was just here Tiamat-san, but he can't stay until the game shuts down." His tone dropped a bit, showing how disappointed he was. But there was nothing he could do. The fact that some of them visited for the last time showed that they cared. Even though she knew they wouldn't care as much as Momonga…

"Well, I finished all my work for today. So I can stay with you until the game shuts down, Momo-chan! Rejoice, for I am here." she jokingly said to him.

He sent me a laughing emoji, "That is true." It was quiet for a moment before he softly said, "I'm really happy you're here."

"Me too Momo-chan. You know, it must have been hard being the Guild Master of Ainz Ooal Gown. Since I'm here all by herself, and as the last member of Ainz Ooal Gown, I will represent every member of this guild to say this."

"W-wha? What is it Tiamat-san?"

She made her avatar stand up, and launched herself into a hug towards the undead. Hugging was not a 17 act, so it was permitted within the game. "I and all the other members would like to say to you, Momonga, the eternal leader of Ainz Ooal Gown, thank you for everything. Thank you for being there when nobody else was. Thank you for being strong. Thank you for the wonderful memories we all have made in the game. But most importantly, thank you for making Ainz Ooal Gown another home for us."

Through her speaker, she could hear him sniffling, which made her feel relieved. She was a bit happy that she was not the only one who was on the verge of tears tonight.

He returned the hug "Thank you very much, Tiamat-san."

She cleared her throat, "Now that it's all been said and done, what about a last tour through all the floors starting from the first floor?"

"Of course! It would be my honor to give you one last tour."

She beamed and sent him a let's go emoji.

And so, they walked around Nazarick, from the first floor to the tenth floor, looking at all the designs of the guild for the last time, and collecting all of the Floor Guardians, until they returned to the Throne Room on the ninth floor.

"This place is as majestic as ever." she mentioned out loud unknowingly. It was true, the members spent so much time and effort into every single piece. Indeed, the Throne Room was truly breathtaking.

Momonga then proceeded to sit on the lone throne in the room, and she stood on his left as he commanded the Floor Guardians to kneel in front of the throne while the Pleiades lead by Sebas stood in a line on his right side.

"Have you read Albedo's lore, Tiamat-san?" Momonga asked.

"Well, not really. It can only be accessed by the Guild Staff which only you could hold, so all I know about it is what Tabula blabbed on about."

Momonga opened Albedo's lore for her to read:

"_She is a demoness who holds the title of Guardian Overseer, which is the highest-ranking position in the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick. With flowing raven hair and golden pupils, her beauty could bewitch a nation._

_She is proud of her position and confronts intruders as a confident, dignified superior being._

_Regardless of how brilliant or brave her foes are, or whether she considers them strong, she will never acknowledge them as being equal to herself._

_This is because she understands the meaning of the position bestowed upon her._

_Her abilities befit the title of Guardian Overseer, with outstanding intelligence and combat ability._

_That said, she is not omnicompetent. For instance, in pure wits, Demiurge is her superior, while Shalltear is superior in fighting ability. Yet, nobody in Nazarick can rival her administrative ability._

_In addition, her feminine skills - particularly those pertaining to being a housewife - are excellent, and during her free time, she can be seen sweeping, sewing, and so on._

_Though the reason is unknown, she enjoys cleanliness and her desire for such frequently drives her to clean things up._

_In particular, her ability to sort out bookshelves knows no peer._

_However, she recognizes the possessions of others as belonging to them, so she rarely insists on cleaning up._

_That said, the items accumulated through her collector's habit are typically very messy._

_Therefore, it remains to be seen whether she actually likes being tidy._

_This might well be an act - in order to appear as the perfect woman - though the truth of that is unknown. It is too scary to confirm._

_She always has a gentle smile on her, and her elegant way of speech has made many people think she is a goddess or an angel._

_That mistake is not particularly laughable, given that she is surrounded by that sort of atmosphere and acts in an appropriate way._

_The fact is, it would not be wrong to view her in that way._

_She was originally planned to be an angel of the highest order, but she ended up with a greatly distorted appearance after being fused with a monster from the land of dreams._

_Because of that, her personality is similarly twisted, being merciless and cruel, cunning and savage. She gives her enemies despair and revels in their agonizing deaths._

_Her usual expression seems to be there to suppress the urges which flow from her heart - a mask which exists to conceals her desire to perform ruthless acts upon the weak._

_If the mask breaks, she would probably end up being like Empress Lu Zhsheor Empress Wu Zetian._

_However, that only applies when dealing with those, not of Nazarick._

_Fortunately for those who do not serve Nazarick, one can take comfort in the fact that the mask is very sturdy and will not break easily._

_She feels very strongly about her duties as the Guardian Overseer of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick._

_Naturally, the fact that she has ears everywhere listening for information goes without saying._

_In addition, she smiles all the time - to the point where one might say she does not show any other emotion._

_Her smile is nothing more than a poker face to her._

_She can also show emotions like anger, grimaces and fake tears._

_Her sophisticated lady's face will not break, even when she is torturing the fools who oppose her._

_By her appearance alone, she is a perfect beauty._

_Incidentally, she's a slut._"

"Jesus, Tabula. What is this Gap Moe character that you've created..." she chuckled, and Momonga laughed out loud.

"That's the same response I gave to him when I first read her settings." He sadly smiled.

"Can we change it?"

"Well, I can since I hold the staff of Ainz Ooal Gown. What do you want to change it to?"

"Just delete the slut part... poor Albedo, she doesn't deserve it. Consider it a gift from us before we part."

Momonga then proceeded to delete 'incidentally, she's a slut.' and then closed the settings tabs on Albedo

"Bow down" he commanded the NPCs.

He looked up to the flags of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown and pointed at them one by one. "Me, Touch Me, Shijuuten Suzaku, Ankoro MochiMochi, Herohero, Peroroncino, Bukubukuchagama, Tabula Smaradigna, Warrior Takemikazuchi, Variable Talisman, Genjiro..."

She continued listening to him with a heavy heart. For the past year, YGGDRASIL had been an adventure. A precious memory, a treasure that she would cherish. Here, she found a second home, a new family and friends. Player, no... people who were loyal to her as she was to them.

Her heart clenched painfully. Despite all they had done to draw the members closer, it was no use after all. Of course she couldn't blame them, they had more important things to do and she understood. They were not betraying Ainz Ooal Gown, they were just away for a while.

But with the shut down, they were going to be away forever…

She looked at Momonga, who was still listing all the names of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown. Looking at him, she remembered how much harder it must be for him since he loved Ainz Ooal Gown more than she did. He was one of the original nine after all.

"...and finally Tiamat." He finished. "It was really fun wasn't it to be able to play together..."

The clock read 23:57:12

She hummed in acknowledgement as she held back a flood of tears. She didn't want Momonga to know. She didn't deserve to cry. He did.

"After this I have to wake up at 4 A.M, hopefully this doesn't affect our jobs." He chuckled light-heartedly.

She hummed again…

"I hope we can play another game together in the future..."

Numerous ideas and goodbyes pass through her head like a storm, and she was unable to convey her thoughts to him with such little time, so she could only meekly reply "Me too..."

"You know Hannah?" she stiffened at her real name. Momonga and her knew each other IRL, especially after the events at her bakery. Even IRL, he would call me by her avatar's name, and he rarely ever mentioned her actual name. "Your bread is really delicious."

She gave him a small giggle "I know, that's why it sells."

The clock read 23:58:30.

"I like you a lot, you know..." A shocked noise left her. But he continued, "I've liked you since I first watched your PvP with Touch Me. Your build is a mess yet it's absolutely mental."

"The hell? Don't mock my Tiamat you, you..." she scampered to find a suitable insult until she decided on "Kel'Thuzad!" A reference to the ancient RPG World of Warcraft.

She used to joke to Momonga a lot about how his character looked similar to the Undead Sorcerer from WoW the Frozen Throne.

He just laughed and replied. "But it's not just that. You're kind, and you always put out your heart in everything. Don't think I've never notice that you've been trying to reduce tension between the guild members. And even if you think otherwise, I think you're beautiful."

"S-So blunt..." Then the atmosphere between the two of them became quiet, like he was waiting for her reply.

The clock read 23:59:40.

"Then tomorrow, let's meet up at her bakery." she decided.

"I'd like that..." He put his hand on the guild staff and she followed.

"I don't want this to end..." she whispered, on the verge of sobbing.

"Me as well..."

The clock finally reached 00:00:00

YGGDRASIL was no more.

Or so they thought.

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**A/N: And so, her adventure begins.**


	2. CHAPTER 2: The New World

**hackslashbash: Reuploaded 16/10/2019**

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23:59:58

Tiamat and Momonga waited with their eyes closed for the countdown to end.

Once the clock hit 00:00, they would be forcibly logged out of the game, and the night would end there.

At least that's what should've happened.

Tiamat shut her eyes and waited for the darkness to come as her chest constricted and her lips trembled; the dam holding back her frustrations suddenly breaking as it failed to contain her feelings, and she sobbed.

Nazarick meant a lot to her, but to Momonga it meant everything. She wept for her friend who had sacrificed all his time, money, and effort for the game.

She heard a small gasp below her.

'_Idon'twantittoendIdon'twantittoendIdon'twantittoend. Pleasedon'ttakeourhomeaway.'_

Her sobbing grew louder as she tried to hide her voice under the palms of her hands.

Wait, why were her hands wet?

"Hannah," a deep voice to her right called her name. An unfamiliar voice, who…?

She slowly opened her eyes. Her vision was blurry from tears, but she could still see Momonga's avatar, the Overlord, his head awash with a green aura, as he reached his hand out to her and pulled her to him.

Tiamat trembled at the cold touch of undeath, and as soon as his skeletal fingers touched her hand, she slapped it away out of reflex.

'_The game doesn't support physical sensations.'_

"Hannah!" Momonga raised his voice a little, concern for his friend leaking through.

Tiamat flinched, covering her ear with her hand as the ringing inside grew louder and louder. She didn't remember setting her headphone volume that high; all these sounds were starting to give her a headache. She needed to lower the game's volume as soon as possible.

She accessed her status and was surprised to see that she couldn't access the 'Settings' button.

'_W-What…'_

Momonga got up from the Throne and moved to put his hand on her shoulder. Tiamat took a shaky step backwards. She didn't recognize the voice that was uttering her name.

"A-Are you really Suzuki? Your voice..." Tiamat asked softly, her eyes bewildered as she looked around her.

Once she felt that the head-piercing ringing in her ears had diminished, she looked around the Throne Room, her eyes widening as she was overwhelmed by a clarity beyond what a game was capable of producing.

The chandeliers gleamed with reflected light too vivid to belong in even a DRMMO.

As she shifted her feet and heard the soft ruffling of the carpet rubbing against her shoes, she looked down and noticed that she could see the individual fibers of the crimson carpet.

'_There's no way a game should be able to do this. They even have laws against making things too detailed!'_

"Ann! Look at me, are you alright?!" the Skeleton before her was awash in a green aura as it panickedly called out to her.

The distress in that voice was unmistakable. Even if it was as different as it was now, she knew for certain that tone could only belong to Suzuki.

Her doubts wiped away, she moved forward and grabbed his cloak in desperation.

Her heart was beating quickly, too fast even, as she tightened her fingers around his cloak, as if she was trying to find answers in those empty sockets of his. Answers that she knew that he wouldn't have.

"Suzuki, why is this happening? Why am I seeing things so clearly? Why do you sound so different? Why—"

"Ann, calm down," Momonga delicately put his hand on her shoulder. "Everything is going to be okay."

Tiamat noticed that she was hyperventilating.

'_Why, why, whywhywhywhywhy?'_

"Ann. You _need _to breathe," Momonga brought her in closer as he rubbed small circles around her back.

She could feel the cold undeath of his skeletal hands as they gingerly rubbed her back.

The act of comfort only caused her to begin crying again.

"Is everything alright, Lord Momonga?" a sweet yet worried voice rang out clearly from the right side of the Throne.

Tiamat wiped her eyes and slowly turned to the source of the sound. Her mouth fell open when she saw that Albedo had moved _without being commanded_.

"Is Lady Tiamat injured?" Albedo rushed over, her wings trembling in panic.

"My. Lady!" an alarmed sound came from the large icy insect Cocytus, his pincers clacking against each other.

"Lady Tiamat," a man's voice came from below the Throne. She saw Demiurge who had stood up and was walking over to where she and Suzuki were standing. Demiurge's eyebrows were furrowed in frustration and distress as he agonizingly asked, "What is wrong, My Lady? Are you hurt? Did anyone try to hurt you? Please tell us so we can punish them and rectify their mistakes."

NPCs weren't supposed to talk on their own, and they definitely shouldn't have been able to move without being commanded. Moreover, their expressions looked as if they were..._alive_.

Tiamat looked away from Demiurge, and buried herself in Momonga's robes, trembling.

Everything was _weirdweirdweird_. She felt like she was back again in that foreign mansion filled with unknown people and unknown men with unknown drinks and she was terrified.

Momonga felt his own worry mount up as he saw his friend in a completely broken state. She was supposed to be strong and cheerful, not the quivering wreck she was now.

"What is it, Ann?" Momonga caught her trembling hands in his own. "Please tell me why you're so scared."

"It's w-weird…" she whimpered, her head still covered in his cloak, "E-Everything is w-weird, make it stop, _pleasepleaseplease_…"

"Ann, take a deep breath," Momonga gently pulled her out of his robes.

She took several gulps, her chest heaving as her lungs greedily drank in the air around her. Once Momonga saw that her shoulders had stopped shaking, he calmly continued.

"What's weird, Ann?" Suzuki softly asked her.

"The Floor Guardians, t-they shouldn't be able to move on their own, r-right?" she looked up into Suzuki's steadily pulsing red dots as she lifted a finger pointing towards the Guardians and Maids that were before the Throne.

At her question, Albedo immediately slammed her head into the ground. "I'm sorry, My Lady! It was impudent of me to speak before the Supreme Beings without permission. If you would allow me to correct this mistake, I will be forever grateful!" the Succubus resolutely declared as she pulled a giant black axe seemingly out of nowhere.

"No no no! you don't have to go that far Albedo. She was just shocked, that's all," Momonga frantically tried to get Albedo to put the axe away.

After Momonga finally convinced Albedo that she didn't do anything wrong, Tiamat took in the rest of her surroundings. The Pleiades Battle Maids stood attentively on the right, as well as the Floor Guardians who were all looking at her, visibly distraught, very emotional, and _very _real.

For some reason, their distress brought a pang of pain to her heart.

As she slowly recovered from her initial shock, she noticed that her body felt much different from her real life body. She felt lighter and as she glanced over her limbs, she noticed the absence of aches and scars on her arms and legs.

Faced with all these startling transformations, a hazy hypothesis began to form in her pounding head.

First, she believed that they were no longer in YGGDRASIL. Now she had to confirm that fantastical notion…

After she took a few more deep breaths to expel any remaining panic, she tried to assess the situation.

"Albedo," Tiamat impulsively called out, having decided on a course of action.

The Succubus immediately straightened her back, "Hai!"

Tiamat flinched; she hadn't expected such an energetic response.

Letting go of Momonga's skeletal hands, Tiamat walked in front of Albedo and looked the Succubus in the eye in a moment of bravado, "Albedo, could I hug you?"

"My Lady?" Albedo's eyes were filled with a mixture of worry and confusion.

"I-If you don't want to, it's okay…" Tiamat let out a shaky smile.

Of course no one would want someone as disgusting as her to touch them.

"No! I apologize for the misunderstanding, My Lady! I really want to!" Albedo hurriedly responded.

"Um, okay, then here we go," Tiamat walked towards Albedo and enveloped her in an awkward hug.

'_Why did I decide on hugging of all things…?' _Tiamat inwardly groaned.

Pushing aside the unwelcome thoughts of her impromptu decision, Tiamat focused on what she was feeling.

As her arms wrapped around Albedo and rested on the Succubus's back, Tiamat noticed the softness of her skin, the silkiness of her dress, and Albedo's warm breath on her cheeks.

Tiamat knew that these sensations were impossible to replicate in YGGDRASIL; a game constricted by laws in how realistic they were allowed to make things.

At that moment, she knew for sure that they were no longer in a game.

As Tiamat reached this revelation, Albedo let out a weird noise.

She pulled away from the Succubus and looked at her with worry.

"Albedo? Are you alright?"

Albedo trembled as she hugged her arms around herself, and Tiamat felt even more guilty.

'_I shouldn't have forced her to do that…'_

"No…" Albedo's body trembled.

"I'm so sorry!" Tiamat apologized, sincerely believing that she had hurt Albedo. "I knew I shouldn't have done that without asking you! Plea—"

"No, your touch is like fire against my skin! Ahn~ how I long for you to touch me again!"

Tiamat stared blankly at Albedo, and then turned around to look at Momonga.

'_Didn't we delete the 'slut' part?' _she silently mouthed, the distant screeching of a Vampire Loli echoing in the background.

Momonga slowly shook his head and mouthed something, but Tiamat couldn't make out what he was trying to say due to his lack of lips.

One day they would realize that Momonga had forgotten to hit the 'Save' button. But that was a story for another time.

She slapped her cheeks with her hands, trying to focus herself on the task at hand.

The world they were in was real.

Nazarick was real.

Nazarick was _real._

Her home still existed, it was not destroyed.

She still had a place to call home. A wry grin emerged from her face.

"Momo-chan! All of this," her voice regaining its usual cheer as she waved around her, "It's real. It's all real!" her bright laughter filling the Throne Room.

Despite lacking a mouth, she could see that Momonga had a wide grin on his face. All of a sudden, an emerald sheen shone from him and his joy seemed to be subdued.

"Sebas," Momonga calmly called, a hint of happiness still lingering in his words, "I want you to check the surroundings of Nazarick. If you find any hostile creatures, do not engage and immediately return to the Sixth Floor to report your findings."

"Your wish is my command, Lord Momonga," the Butler of Steel bowed before leaving the Throne Room.

"Battle Maid Pleiades," Momonga continued, "Watch over this floor while Sebas out. You will receive further instructions later. And as for the Floor Guardians, Nazarick is in a state of emergency! Guard your respective floors and beware of intruders. We will meet again on the Sixth Floor once Sebas has returned."

"As you will, My Lord."

They quickly dispersed from the Throne room, leaving only her, Momonga, and Albedo. The last among the three had a furious blush on her face.

"I want to apologize again, Albedo," Tiamat turned towards the Succubus, "I know that some people don't like to be touched, an—"

"Nonono, My Lady, please don't apologize! You're welcome to t-touch me anytime you wish!"

Tiamat looked at Momonga, pleading for his help.

Momonga cleared his throat. "Albedo, this is my order for you."

Albedo immediately straightened herself and composed her face, although a hint of red still remained. "Yes, My Lord!"

"I want you to gather every Floor Guardian, except for the fourth and the eighth to the fighting arena on the Sixth Floor after Sebas has returned."

"Understood," She bowed and left the room.

Now it was just her and Momonga.

"What happened Momo-chan?"

"I do not know myself. But I want to check something."

"What?"

_[Can you hear me?] _Momonga's voice echoed in her head.

"Oh my god! What the hell was that?!"

"Umu," He nodded. "It seems that the『Message』function still works."

"T-that was『Message』? It sounded like you were talking in my head."

"There is another thing I would like to test," he continued. "You have the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown with you, right?"

She looked down at her left hand, and on her forefinger, the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown delicately rested, gleaming with an unearthly light.

"Yup..."

"Try teleporting to the Sixth Floor."

"W-what? How in the world-" but Momonga was long gone before she finished her sentence. She was left all alone in the Throne Room.

Tiamat took a deep breath in.

'_It's alright. You can do this,_' she thought as she tried to imagine teleporting to the Sixth Floor.

In an instant her surroundings changed from the throne room to one of the entrances of the arena on the Sixth Floor.

'_Well, that was easy,_' all she had to do was visualize the Arena and poof she went.

"So we can use our items in this world..." she jumped, startled by the sudden appearance of Momonga. "It seems you have no problem with your guild ring as well, right?"

"...yes," Everything was going too fast for her to follow. Just a few minutes ago, she was feeling sad and dejected. Now she didn't know what to feel. Was this a curse or a blessing? Should she feel relieved? Was she allowed to be relieved?

"Then, let us go..." Momonga walked in front of her, leading the way to the Arena.

As they walked towards the awe-inspiring stone structure, Tiamat looked up.

It was far, far different from VR. Countless stars twinkled in the night sky, unhidden by the smog that had plagued Earth so. She could only open her mouth in awe.

It was truly beautiful. If only Blue Planet could see just how well he'd done on the Sixth Floor.

At that moment she remembered. She was a fucking Dragon. She could actually fly. Although she had used a ton of cash items to sculpt her character into a more human appearance and lost a lot of her draconic body parts in the process, she still had access to her wings, albeit less effective.

"Momo-chan, I'm gonna go outside real quick," she mentioned, and without waiting to hear his response, she quickly teleported to the first floor.

If Blue Planet's artificial creation looked like a masterpiece, just how beautiful would the real thing be?

Unable to contain her excitement, she ran across the stairs at the entrance of the tomb three at a time. Somebody called out to her, but in her excitement, she didn't notice.

She stepped out of the entrance and looked up at the night sky

Her breath caught in her throat.

'_My God._'

It was _beautiful_. The air was fresh, with no toxic gas or dust storm to sully it; she could even smell the scent of the grass surrounding Nazarick. She lifted her head to see the clouds slowly blown away by the wind, while a large moon illuminated the pillars at the entrance of the tomb.

It was a divine sight.

IRL she couldn't even walk outside at night because of the environment everyone lived in. To be able to bask in the moonlight and view the sky clearly was a whole new world for her.

Is this what Earth used to be? The mega-corporations foolishly abandoned and tore apart such beautiful natural masterpieces just for the sake of their own comfort?

"My Lady," a voice called out from behind her. He was accompanied by the Evil Lords of the Seventh Floor: Wrath and Jealousy.

"Demiurge?" she asked unsure whether it was him or not.

He slowly stepped out into the moonlight, and she could see his features much more clearly. He was definitely handsome, with an edge of cruelty underlying his looks. Ulbert's masterpiece indeed. As soon as she called his name, she could see excitement practically pouring out of him, as well as worry.

'_I wonder why…_'

"Are you alright My Lady? Do you have any problems or injuries?" he worriedly asked.

_Oh. _In all her excitement, Tiamat had forgotten the scene she caused in the Throne Room. At that moment, she remembered how she clung onto Momonga.

Unknowingly, her cheeks and ears blushed a deep red, the same color of her hair.

"I'm alright Demiurge, thank you for your concern," she covered her face in embarrassment and turned around so her back faced Demiurge. She was a grown woman crying in public; what had her life become?

Demiurge cleared his throat, "Are you going outside, My Lady?"

"Ah, yes. I wanted to look at the stars for a short while, Demiurge. Don't worry, I will go back to meet you all on the Sixth Floor."

"I would advise against that My Lady," Demiurge fixed his glasses. "We are currently in unknown territory. If something were to happen to you... No, we would gladly lay our lives and perish as your shields." He immediately knelt, Wrath and Jealousy followed.

How could he say that?

Perish as her shield. As if she would let them. A foreign sense of possessiveness ran through her body.

If anyone dared to hurt the members of Ainz Ooal Gown, even down to the smallest cockroaches…

She. Would. Hunt. Them. Down.

Without her realizing, her passive aura leaked out. Demiurge, Wrath, and Jealousy, as well as the other denizens guarding the first floor, felt a chill run down their spine as the once cold room was suddenly stifling with heat, even though there was no fire. Her eyes turned from amethyst to a golden amber with vertical slits for pupils.

The aura of a Supreme Being.

'_Truly those who named her the weakest were foolish,_' Demiurge thought to himself.

"Demiurge..." Tiamat let out a low growl that Demiurge's ears strained to catch.

Afraid that he had angered one of the Supreme Beings, the only two who decided to stay with them, Demiurge raked his brain on what he might have said to have angered the soft-spoken Dragoness of Nazarick, and found none.

"My Lady," He fearfully responded.

"Don't you dare say that you'll perish in front of me again," she growled again, trying to contain the boiling anger and sadness the thought provoked.

"My Lady?" Demiurge questioned. The Guardians existed to protect the Supreme Beings, in fact, all of the members of Nazarick existed only for the Supreme Beings. To be able to lay down their lives for their Gods, was there any greater honor? Wasn't that the right course of action?

"You? Perish? No! If anyone even thinks about hurting you or any creature in Nazarick down to its smallest spiders, they would have to go through me first. I will fight until they grind me into dust," Tiamat bristled. Letting out her anger, she slowly breathed in and out to calm herself.

'_They're still here, they're unharmed. They're yours to protect. They're safesafesafesafesafe._'

The sheer joy Demiurge felt from her outburst couldn't be contained as he smiled from ear to ear.

What an honor! To belong to the Supreme Beings. Lady Tiamat actually considered them hers, as it should be. His life belonged to them, no, every fiber of his being belonged to them. And the fact that she acknowledged that couldn't make him happier.

"I understand, Lady Tiamat."

Her aura died down as quickly as it came. With the pressure released, Wrath and Jealousy let out breaths they didn't even know they were holding.

"Alright Demiurge, Wrath, and Jealousy, I'm glad you understand. I'm just gonna take a quick look at the sky. Just five minutes. I promise. I'll come back right after."

"Then," he bowed, Wrath and Jealousy doing likewise. "Have a safe trip My Lady, and please come back quickly. I will search for you if you don't return in five minutes."

She smiled happily at Demiurge. "Yes! Thank you! I'll be back soon!"

Then she leapt into the sky. She felt the urge to just glide around but ignored the urge and continued to soar closer and closer to the sky and stars, until she was just under the clouds, and took a look at the new world around her.

She continued around her in awe as she lost track of time, and kept on stargazing until Demiurge picked her up to return to the Sixth Floor.

(ง •̀ω•́)ง

**DEMIURGE POV**

Lord Momonga and Lady Tiamat had fetched him from his floor and commanded him to 'follow' until they reached the Ninth Floor.

As ordered he 'waited'. For whatever reason, his Gods had brought all of the Floor Guardians to the Throne Room. There must be something important to discuss.

He and the others continued to 'wait' while the two Supreme Beings talked. As a good subject he decided to listen attentively, for a good subject should know what his masters were thinking.

But to his despair, the words he heard sounded like farewells. It was as if the world was going to perish, and they would not meet again.

Would they decide to leave them behind like the other Supreme Beings, or would they decide to stay?

Of course all the other Floor Guardians and even the Pleiades were thinking the same thing.

_Don't abandon us._

For the purpose of their existence was to fulfill the Supreme Beings' wishes. For they were mere subjects and they were their Masters.

What good were subjects without a Master to follow?

Still, he continued to 'wait'.

Because it was not his place to barge in on the Supreme Beings' conversation.

Until he smelled tears and heard a small sob in front of him.

Concerned, he raised his head, only to find his Lady, one of the Last Supreme Beings, crying. He could hear the raw pain in her cries. His Lady was crying, but he was ordered to 'wait'. Therefore he had to 'wait', no matter how much he wished to address the problem. He wanted to wipe away her tears, to find the cause of her misery and end it.

He believed, no, _knew _that everyone in the room desired the same thing.

His Lord embraced her to ease her pain, but this only made her cry harder.

Rage filled his vision.

Who? Who dared to cause his Lady, his Master, his _Goddess_, such distress?

He would personally end those who caused his Goddess such sorrow. He would ensure endless misery and pain to those who even thought of harming her.

His second thought was concern.

Was she hurt? Was she in pain? Who was she crying for? And why did she cry?

Mulling over his situation, he found a loophole. He wouldn't disregard his order to 'wait', but he was still allowed to speak. So he raised his voice to question the well being of His Goddess. He knew he was speaking out of turn. All those who raised their concerns knew. But they had to know.

_He had to know._

Before he could receive an answer, he received another order to 'guard' Nazarick. With a heavy heart, he left. Because he could not abandon an order from his Lord.

As it was impossible for Shalltear to guard all three floors simultaneously, he offered to help her by sending his demons and himself to guard the first floor.

He was slowly making his rounds around the first floor to make sure nothing was out of place and that no intruder had entered Nazarick.

Halfway through, he felt a familiar presence. His Goddess was here by herself on the first floor. What was she doing? Didn't she know that it was currently dangerous to roam Nazarick alone?

Then he saw her running towards the front door.

She was abandoning them. She was running away from them.

To his eternal shame, that was what he had thought at first.

He called out to her, but she didn't respond. Excitement covered her features as she lifted her long gown and ran barefooted towards the door. Her tail thumped up and down on the floor in excitement, eyes lighting up in awe when she saw the night sky.

How beautiful was his Goddess.

The pale moonlight shone upon her form, and her amethyst colored eyes that shone like finely cut gemstones under the moonlight. The golden scales that adorned her dress glittered.

It turned out she really just wanted to see the view outside.

He felt foolish and ashamed to have distrusted his Goddess so.

He asked whether she was alright, and His Goddess blushed beautifully, like the color of her hair.

It was a sight he would never forget.

Then, he offered his life as her shield. He would perish to ensure his Goddess's survival as the situation could not be addressed yet. The world that Nazarick was in now was different. Unknown threats loomed just around the corner and without enough information, there was nothing he could do but to offer himself to protect her.

Then her eyes slowly turned into molten gold, and a slit formed in each eye. The gaze of a predator.

She was angry at his proposal. It wasn't because she was offended that he offered to protect a Supreme Being. Which would be blasphemy, for he knew how strong she really was despite the title those fools had given her.

She was angry because she thought someone was going to harm him, to take what was hers. And when she called him hers, he was filled with absolute joy.

His Goddess said they were all hers.

Which was a shame, because he wanted her for himself.

But that's alright. He'll learn to share someday.

(ง •̀ω•́)ง

**A/N: Welp that was a lot of reviews! Thank you very much for those who reviewed and followed this story. I made this story just for fun, because sometimes I wanted to read a reverse harem OC who is strong and could handle herself. Hey, it's 2019. Why are there so many shitty reverse harems where the MCs are so. fucking. Generic. Thank you to those who pointed out that this story needs improvement(s). I really appreciate it, and I will try to edit the story asap. And if you wanna send flames, I don't mind. Lol. That means that you're angry enough that you actually cares. You Tsundere~**

**Oh yeah, yadayada english is not my native language, blablabla it sounds like justification. Because no it isn't. A good piece of literature is not just the story line, or the character development, but also the language in which you choose to deliver your story. So please find those mistakes and let me know! I've actually written up to chapter 3. So if you want more, you can just tell me. Toodles!**

**7/25/2019: I changed my mind. I don't think I'm going to write reverse harem by using the plot I made. If you come here expecting heavy romance, you'll probably be disappointed. If, and I repeat, IF the story does end up having any, it's going to be a reaaaaaaally slow development. Btw, if we do head towards romance then it's gonna be with bone daddy. Sorry if you think I misled you into thinking that we are heading towards reverse harem.**


	3. CHAPTER 3: The Floor Guardians

**Chapter 3: The Floor Guardians**

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**Hackslashbash: Reuploaded 30/08/2019.**

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"I have come to fetch you, My Lady," called Demiurge as she was lost in her thoughts. She had promised Demiurge that she would be back in five minutes. But it seemed that she had lost track of time. The sky was simply too beautiful, and the landscape equally so.

It was wonderful to be able to see all of this with her own eyes.

Tiamat sheepishly smiled at him, "Sorry Demiurge, I lost track of time. The sky was simply too pretty to not be admired."

"I believe that no sky is as beautiful as you are, My Lady."

"Gosh, when did you become such a flirt Demiurge," she joked.

"It is only natural to appreciate the beauty in front of me, My Lady."

Tiamat looked at him, prepared to give another clap-back, but one look into his gemstone eyes and she could tell he was being serious.

Back IRL, she was so fucking ugly, and never had any pleasant experience with men in her entire life.

Tiamat was basically her escape. Everything she ever wanted to be, but would never get the chance to. Someone beautiful, but strong enough to withstand all attacks.

Because of her appearance, she never had any experiences with relationships that were not platonic and had basically zero immunity to flirting. It caused her to blush far too easily around such flirtatious remarks. She could feel him shaking with happiness over his own comment.

'_That smug demon…_'

That was why when Demiurge said she was beautiful, she felt a little bit dejected. Who he mentioned as beautiful was Tiamat. Basically just a skin of who she really was and she wondered, '_If I showed him my real appearance would he still tell me that I'm beautiful?_'

The answer showed itself almost immediately as soon as she finished asking herself.

He wouldn't.

Forcing the unpleasant thoughts to the back of her head, they descended to the entrance of Nazarick.

There was another thing she wanted to try, but she had never went to the room before, so she had no idea what to visualize.

"Demiurge, have you finished making your rounds on this floor?" she asked.

"No, My Lady. Wrath and Jealousy are patrolling as we speak."

Tiamat hummed in acknowledgment. Wrath and Jealousy were high level demons, moreover if anything were to happen, she would immediately teleport to the first floor.

"Would you mind helping me, Demiurge?"

"Anything, My Lady!" He wagged his tail in excitement. Throughout his existence he had never received an order from Lady Tiamat. This would be the first, truly an occasion worth celebrating.

"It's embarrassing, but I've never visited the kitchens before. Can you take me there? Then you can go on your way."

"It would be an honor, My Lady." He bowed and immediately went to her left, offering his hand for me to take.

_(:D｣)

Demiurge took her to the Ninth Floor, leading her to the cafeteria where the homunculi maids usually had their meals. There, Tiamat was greeted by Sous-Chef.

"Lady Tiamat, Demiurge-sama, welcome to the kitchen."

"Hello Sous-Chef," she greeted back. She turned to Demiurge, "Thank you for escorting me here Demiurge, you may return now."

"My Lady, I have a selfish request," he hesitated as he laid his hand on top of his heart.

Demiurge looked at her like a dejected puppy. What sort of request would be considered so selfish that he would make such an expression…

"Well that depends on the request, Demiurge," she answered him fairly. While it was true she would accept most of the Floor Guardians' requests if they asked her, she obviously could not carry out requests outside of her abilities.

"May I escort you back to the Sixth Floor as well?"

The heck? That wasn't selfish at all! Demiurge and her were needed in the meeting on the Sixth Floor after all; wouldn't it make sense if they went there together?

"But what about the rounds?" Tiamat asked him. He had been given a job by Momonga afterall. If his request would cause a disturbance to Momonga's order, then it would make sense for me to reject it.

"I have received a message that both Wrath and Jealousy have finished patrolling the first floor. All that is left is to convene on the Sixth Floor as per instructions," he explained.

Oh, well then him accompanying her should be fine. "Okay, sure. I don't mind," she shrugged.

He beamed at her happily, tail wagging left and right in excitement. She cupped her hand over mouth to let out a small giggle. It was true that he had an impassive face most of the time, but his tail would always betray what he was feeling.

After calming down a bit, she turned back to Sous-Chef. "I want to borrow the kitchen for a few minutes, would that be possible?"

"Of course, Lady Tia-"

"My Lady," Demiurge interrupted, standing up straighter than a bamboo stick. "The kitchen is not a place for the Supreme Beings, if you want, you can ask the kitchen staff to have your meals delivered to your chambers."

"It's fine Demiurge, I just want to try something."

Sous-Chef looked at Demiurge for confirmation. Demiurge gave a slight nod, and finally Sous-Chef showed the way to the kitchen. He asked the kitchen staff to stand back for a few moments as they entered.

"I'm sorry, I promise that it's just going to be for a few minutes." She felt really sorry for imposing. It felt a bit uncomfortable for them to have to stop their activities just for her.

Now, what to do…

After giving it a brief thought, she looked at Sous-Chef, "Can you please grab me flour, eggs, sugar, milk, baking powder, and salt?"

"Are you going to cook, My Lady?" Demiurge asked incredulously.

"Yes, I want to conduct some experiments for myself."

"My Lady, your word is law. You can just ask anyone in this kitchen to do it for you. You don't have to soil your hands..." he pleaded.

"I don't think so," Tiamat firmly replied.

Right at that moment, Sous-Chef returned with basket abundantly filled with the ingredients that she had asked for. Seeing that Demiurge was trying to convince her otherwise, she beat him to it. "How about we compromise, Demiurge?"

"A compromise?" He asked, curious.

"Yes. You will allow me to cook, and then you can escort me to the Sixth Floor. Plus, I'll give you a portion of what I cook if it turns out to be delicious. If I don't cook today, then you can't escort me to the Sixth Floor. Will you accept my selfish request?" she lightheartedly repeated the statement he had used earlier.

Demiurge thought for a while, smirking while he did so. His Supreme Being was such a devious Goddess. He wouldn't be able to refuse, especially since she turned his own word against him.

He would gladly eat any poison his Goddess concocted and even carve out his own flesh if she requested it as an ingredient. Moreover, to receive a dish made by a Supreme Being! How could he resist? If she was this generous, how would she reward him if he did a job well done? Thinking about it made him shudder in religious ecstasy.

His grin stretched from ear to ear as he bowed deeply. The price of one dish was insignificant compared to letting him stand by her side, even for a short while. "It would be an honor, My Lady," he accepted.

Tiamt nodded, happy that he compromised with her. "That settles it then. If you're worried about me hurting myself, you can relax Demiurge. I will ask Sous-Chef to handle the knives." As a former Chef/Baker, she could understand the sentimental importance of knives in the kitchen. Especially if it was a personal knife. She assumed the cooks in Nazarick held the same sentiment.

Demiurge didn't have to know, but she wanted to check whether it was possible to gain new job classes pass the level cap. Was the level cap in this world the same as in YGGDRASIL, or was there no limit to one's growth at all?

The skill that she was aiming for was the Cook job class from YGGDRASIL. She knew the recipe of the dish she wanted to bake since she owned a bakery before, but could she cook without having the job classes for it? That was the question that she desired to answer. Moreover, would it be possible for her to exceed the level one-hundred limit?

She grabbed the nearest bowl, filling it with flour, eggs, and milk before whisking them together until the mixture became smooth. Then she added baking powder, sugar, and a pinch of salt to improve the flavor.

After that was done, she asked Sous-Chef to cut some strawberries and to get her a small bowl of honey.

The strawberries here looked very different than IRL; they were much more red and plumper, compared to the IRL strawberries that were usually freeze dried and definitely not fresh.

Tiamat had never tasted fresh strawberries before, and out of curiosity, after Sous-Chef finished cutting them, she popped one slice into her mouth, just to find out what fresh strawberries tasted like and whether the new world had a sense of taste.

The flavor of fresh strawberry burst in her mouth.

It was tangy, sweet, and juicy. Delicious.

So, all of the five senses worked in the new world.

Then she went to the stove. This was the moment of truth. She could make the batter, but could she cook it? Or would a mangled mess be the result?

She grabbed a pan, doused it in a little bit of oil, and covered the whole pan with it. Then she poured the batter in the pan.

Christ, she really hoped this experiment of hers worked out; cooking and baking were her guilty pleasures. It was the only way for her to destress after a long day.

Tiamat flipped over the pancake, transferred it to a plate and repeated the whole process. She made doubly sure that she got the shapes, colors, and sizes as uniform as possible. After a few minutes, she got a whole bunch of pancakes. Surprisingly, even though she had no levels in Cook, the pancakes all looked pretty decent.

Now for the real test. The flavor.

She scrapped the leftover batter from the bowl with a spoon and cooked them on the pan. The size was smaller and its shape was mangled, but that didn't bother her since she was eating this one.

Once the scraps were done, Tiamat blew on it to cool it down, and prepared her heart. If this didn't work, she would have to find another hobby. Investing more time in learning how to sew children's clothes for Aura and Mare may be a good pass time.

'_Speaking of which, I shouldn't have made so many pancakes before making sure I can actually cook..._' Tiamat internally grimaced at the thought of wasting so much food.

She took a bite out of the pancake.

It was a little bit crunchy because of its smaller size, but it was good! It was sweet but not overbearingly sweet. The salt definitely enhanced the flavor and the baking powder made the pancakes fluffier.

It worked! She could cook!

She opened her stats in excitement, and was a little bit disappointed when she noticed that she didn't go up a level or gain a new job class.

Maybe it worked after she performed an action repeatedly? This was her first time cooking after all.

Level grinding was necessary in other skills. Perhaps that applied for the Cook job class as well.

Tiamat grabbed two separate plates, and transfer two pieces of pancake to each plate, poured honey over them and garnished them with strawberries.

"Here Sous-Chef, thank you for letting me borrow the kitchen."

"M-My Lady! For you to cook a meal for me, how generous of you!"

She ignored him. Their attitudes were getting overbearing at this rate, since they seemed to praise even the very ground she walked on.

'_It's just pancakes. It's nothing special…_'

"Here's your portion, Demiurge," she gave Demiurge the other plate. "The rest of the kitchen staff, as well, please help yourselves," she invited them to eat the rest of the pancakes she had made.

They looked at her in awe, or-a small part of her hoped- it was just that the pancakes were that awesome. After years of baking she could definitely guarantee the flavor. But none of them reached out to take a bite of the pancakes.

"Perhaps sweet pancakes aren't to your liking? Would you like a savory one instead?"

"Lady Tiamat! No, this is enough. To have a Supreme Being cook for us... it's like a dream come true," Sous-Chef hurriedly replied.

So it wasn't that they disliked it. They just didn't want to eat them because they thought it would be a waste. They wanted the pancakes to be on display forever. When would they get another chance to receive a dish that the Supreme Being cooked for them?

"Hm, this is troubling. You want to eat it, but you also don't want to," Tiamat thought for a while.

"Should I give it to the others instead?"

If they didn't want to eat the pancakes, she was planning on packing them and giving them to Momonga instead to check whether the undead had sense of taste, or she would just eat them all. After all, it seemed like a waste of ingredients if she were to throw them away.

Jealousy ran through their veins. They wanted to be the first ones to taste the cooking of a Supreme Being!

"N-no! W-we'll eat them Lady Tiamat!" shouted one of the kitchen staff. One of them immediately took a bite out of the dish she had made and looked like she rose up to the heavens at the wonders of its taste.

'_They're definitely exaggerating...right? There's no way my pancakes are __**that**__ good,_' Tiamat sweatdropped.

Soon, everyone started to scramble for the pancakes and Tiamat watched on with a smile, glad that everyone enjoyed her cooking.

"Well then, everyone, please enjoy your meal. You too Demiurge, take some time to eat them. I'm just gonna sit in the cafeteria and message Momonga about what I've found."

After that day, the tale of Tiamat's cooking spread like wildfire throughout Nazarick. Those who had eaten her pancakes sang praises about how generous Lady Tiamat was and what a delight her cooking was, all just from the simplest ingredients. Those who listened were filled with envy and desperately hoped that they would get to taste the Supreme Being's cooking in the future.

_(:D｣)

She messaged Momonga.

[Momo-chan~]

[Hn, what is it Tiamat-san?]

[I can cook in this place!]

[W-what? But you're already level one hundred! Did you receive a job class for it?] Ainz's surprise leaked into his voice.

[No, I just cooked a pancake, there were no notifications about a new job class. Maybe I should grind the skill for a bit to see if I can get it.]

[Umu...this is interesting news.]

[I know right! Just imagine the possibilities! I could be this chef-tank support character!]

[Please don't recklessly spend levels like that Tiamat-san... Anyways, most of the Floor Guardians have arrived at the Sixth Floor. We only need to wait for Demiurge and Albedo.]

[Ok Momo-chan. Demiurge is with me in the Ninth Floor kitchen. We'll go there ASAP.]

[I'll send Albedo to fetch the two of you.]

(:D｣)

Not long after, Demiurge finished eating the pancakes. "My Lady, thank you for the meal."

"It was no problem, Demiurge. Besides, I love cooking! If you want to eat anything, just ask me."

"I do not wish to be imposing," he mentioned.

"It's no problem, as long as Nazarick has the ingredients for it. But I don't cook humans," she joked at him.

He smiled and nodded, "Then next time, would you forgive my selfishness?" he asked.

"Of course, Demiurge," she replied to him confidently. Tiamat knew that he was equipped with a 『Ring of Sustenance』 that would eliminate hunger and fatigue.

But that was no good.

To do a job well, a person had to eat three meals a day and get enough rest. At least she would see to it that Demiurge ate nutritious meals and got adequate sleep.

Soon Albedo arrived to fetch the two.

"Lady Tiamat," she bowed. "Demiurge. Your presence is requested at the Sixth Floor Arena."

"Thank you, Albedo," Demiurge answered for her. "Shall we, My Lady."

He offered his hand to the Dragoness who took it as they walked through the portal which led to the Sixth Floor.

Teleportation was truly great. They got to travel anywhere in an instant. Imagine walking up the stairs from the Ninth Floor to the Sixth Floor. She would probably be out of breath.

With Albedo leading the way, they walked to where everyone else had gathered. Even from a distance, Tiamat could sense the powerful presence of Momonga and the Floor Guardians.

It was hard to miss Cocytus with his large build and bright icy blue color. The next Floor Guardian she saw was Shalltear with her purple parasoul bickering with Aura while Mare was watching and fumbling by his sister's side.

As she thought…

Tiamat clenched her hand, unable to reign in her emotions. Noticing her gritted teeth, Demiurge paused and asked her if everything was okay.

Unable to respond, Tiamat gave a strained smile and tersely nodded her head.

Because obviously everything _wasn't _okay.

Before they walked out into the center of the Arena, she excused herself from Demiurge for a moment, telling him and Albedo that she would catch up with them as soon as possible.

Tiamat knew they were concerned but she really needed a minute for herself. The two made sure that she was really alright before leaving to join Momonga at the center of the Arena.

As soon as they were halfway there, Tiamat moved back a little bit into one of the corridors and punched the wall in front of her with a surprising amount of force.

Of course, even with this newfound strength, her punch didn't affect anything since her physical attack was basically non-existent.

She threw punch after punch, pounding the wall over and over again. She just couldn't calm down.

'_As I thought, as I thought…_'

"As I thought Aura and Mare are the cutest in the entire world!"

Tiamat looked again around the corridor into the center of the Arena and her eyes landed once again on the dark elves. Their heterochromic eyes were mesmerizing and absolutely lovely. Their soft plump cheeks were basically begging to be pinched.

Once again she was unable to control her adoration for them. Tiamat was there with Bukubukuchagama when the pink slime was deciding on their appearance and personality. From that moment, they immediately captivated her heart.

Tiamat punched the wall a few more times to let out some steam and took a deep breath. After some time had passed, she finally calmed down and dusted her hands before slowly walking up to the group.

"Sorry to keep you guys waiting," she apologized.

"It's. No. Problem. My. Lady." replied Cocytus.

"My Supreme Being, Lady Tiamat~ How I missed you so! I was wondering where you went~" Shalltear brushed against Tiamat's waist and threw herself at her with a huge hug and started nuzzling her stomach.

Tiamat laughed brushed Shalltear's hair with her hand. "I've made you wait, huh?" she laid her hand upon her cold cheeks. Shalltear hugged her even tighter.

Tiamat continued petting Shalltear on the head. They were seriously so cuuuuuute!

"Welcome to the floor that we guard Lady Tiamat!" Aura jumped towards her, eyes twinkling in excitement. "Say something Mare!" she hissed towards her twin, who was hiding behind Cocytus.

"It's. Not. Polite. To. Not. Give. Your. Greetings. To. Our. Lady. Mare." Cocytus chided him. Mare looked even more flustered.

Mare tried looking Tiamat in the eye, but to no avail; he was just too shy to be able to do so. Tiamat patiently waited for him with a smile, but her heart was beating a thousand times per minute.

Truly…

'_CUTE IS JUSTICE!_'

Demiurge nudged Mare towards her direction, and Shalltear finally let go of her, letting the shy dark elf give her his greeting. Even though Shalltear always bickered with Aura, she was kind enough to give the twins an opportunity to speak with the Supreme Being.

Truly, they were adorable children.

As a reward for her consideration, Tiamat patted Shalltear's head one last time before the Vampire went over to Cocytus's side.

"A-ano... W-welcome, L-lady Tiamat to the Sixth Floor that we g-guard," Mare said softly, still afraid to meet her eyes.

Tiamat's heart skipped a beat.

'_S-so cute!_'

"I'm happy to see you two," she said when she finally got over their overwhelming charm. "Thank you Aura. Thank you Mare."

She wanted to pet their heads like she just did to Shalltear. But Mare was too scared of her right now.

If she just pet Aura on her head, Mare might get jealous.

Tiamat kept smiling at them. Ah, how she wanted to create clothes for them! Maybe a red dress for Aura, and a green vest for Mare. They were gonna look absolutely lovely.

But she decided to take things slowly.

In very-very small steps, at least until Mare was comfortable with her.

After Tiamat finished saying her greetings to the twins, she wanted to walk back to Momonga. However, Mare looked at her as if he wanted to say something, because he kept glancing at her and the floor.

"Is there something you need, Mare?" she asked him gently.

Mare was a little surprised when he heard the Supreme Being called his name. His expression twisted as he struggled to overcome his shyness.

But in the end he gathered his courage, "A-ano, are you a-alright, Lady Tiamat? T-the last time w-we saw you, you h-had been c-crying. U-um I j-just wanted to know if you're o-okay..." he finished as his eyes looked like he was on the verge of tears.

Ah, she couldn't contain it anymore.

Tiamat quickly kneeled in front of Aura and Mare and pulled them into a tight embrace. Aura's head lay on her left shoulder, and Mare on her right while her head which was between the two of them snuggled their cheeks. From the corner of her eyes she saw Momo-chan with what she swore was a wry smile.

'_A-ADORABLE! SO ADORABLE!_'

'_FUCK GOING SLOW. CHARGE ALL THE WAY! TWIN MAXIMIZE CHARGER AT ITS BEST!_'

Bless you Bukubuku-chan!

Their eyes widened at the intimate act of Lady Tiamat. Their big blue and green eyes opened wide as they looked at the rest of the Floor Guardians, seemingly asking everyone through their gaze to ask what was wrong with their Lady.

Never in their lives had they had a Supreme Being hug them so warmly. Not even their creator, Bukubukuchagama had given them a hug.

Their hearts swelled in happiness. Was it really alright to impose upon their Supreme Being like this?

Lord Momonga had allowed them to prove themselves before him by defeating his Primal Fire Elemental. Moreover, he had given them water to drink when they were thirsty.

Now they received a tender loving hug from their Lady.

Were they allowed to receive so much love from their Supreme Beings? Were they allowed to feel this happy?

"My Lady," Aura, the braver of the twins asked first. "Did we do something wrong?"

Ahh... Too cute. Tiamat couldn't stop herself from grinning. She let go of them and beamed with happiness. Their eyes grew even wider when they looked at her.

Their eyes were gonna fall out.

"I'm just really happy to see that you both care about my well being. Thank you very much," then she proceeded to pat their heads. She must've scared them with her sudden actions because their innocent eyes were already tearing up. Even Mare occasionally directed a scared glance towards her.

Come to think of it, her character Tiamat had never smiled before. To show emotions to each other, players would usually send emojis. Maybe she had a really scary smile?

Finally, Momonga called for her, "Tiamat-san, please stop cuddling the twins and come here."

Tiamat cleared her throat and quickly stood up, sending an apologetic gaze towards the twins for scaring them. She promised in her head that she would control her desire to not immediately succumb to cute and adorable creatures!

"Hai, hai..."

Tiamat put on her poker face and pretended that nothing ever happened. It was then she noticed that Momonga's despair aura was leaking all over the place.

'_What the hell Momo-chan? You're going to scare all of them._"

From her left, she noticed that someone was walking towards the center of the Arena. When she looked back, it turned out to be Sebas who had just finished his scouting. He then flawlessly got himself in line with the other Floor Guardians.

The Guardians instantly ceased their chatter and formed a horizontal line before her and Momonga. To them, the current her who erased all emotions from her expression had completely killed the happy and joyful mood from before.

Her perfectly tranquil face was the face of a Supreme Being.

The current her had to perfectly support Momonga, especially now that the 'game' had become 'reality'. He was the guild leader and she was his member. She could share her opinions, but the last decision fell to Momonga.

Of course, Momo-chan was a big softie so there was nothing to worry about there.

"You all did well to gather here. Thank you," Momonga said to the Floor Guardians.

Albedo raised her head, her voice like honey in the air. "Your thanks are wasted upon us. We here have all pledged ourselves to you."

"Lord Momonga, you may find us lacking. However, we vow to work hard and live up to the expectations of the Supreme Beings who created us."

"We vow this to you."

"Now, everyone. To our Supreme Leaders, the ritual of fidelity."

All the Guardians had solemn, respectful expressions. They showed no sign of playing around.

Shalltear, who stood on one end of the line, stepped forward. "Shalltear Bloodfallen, Guardian of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Floors, presents herself to the Masters," She fell to one knee, one hand pressed against her chest, and bowed deeply.

After that, Cocytus stepped forward and said, "Cocytus. Guardian. Of. The. 5th. Floor. Presents. Himself. To. The. Masters." Much like Shalltear had, he knelt before Momonga and Tiamat like a vassal before his lords.

Then, it was the twin dark elves' turn, "Guardian of the 6th Floor, Aura Bella Fiora, presents herself to the Masters."

"Al-also a Guardian of the 6th Floor, Mare Bello Fiore, presents himself to the Masters." They knelt respectfully and lowered their heads to Momonga and her. The way they knelt was identical.

After that, Demiurge advanced in a dignified manner. "The Guardian of the 7th Floor, Demiurge, presents himself to the Masters." Following his crisp words, Demiurge went to one knee in a graceful descent, as though expressing his heart through his actions.

Finally, Albedo stepped forward as well.

"The Guardian Overseer Albedo presents herself to the Masters," She smiled and knelt like the other Guardians. However, Albedo continued speaking in a high and clear voice as she delivered her vow to Momonga.

"With the exception of the 4th Floor Guardian Gargantua and the 8th Floor Guardian Victim, all the Floor Guardians are gathered before you. Thus, do we offer up our utmost loyalty to the Masters."

Even though the only cold aura here belonged to Cocytus, Tiamat felt a chill run down her spine as she heard them give their pledge of loyalty to Momonga and her.

Moreover, she had already saw Demiurge's loyalty from before. But instead of feeling the obvious cringe over the whole situation, she somehow felt happy and proud.

So happy that a small smile escaped her lips, which didn't go unnoticed by the Floor Guardians. Even without her realizing, she had granted them the greatest honor.

"Wonderful, Floor Guardians!" Momonga spread his arms out wide, "I am confident that all of you will be able to fulfill your duties without fail!"

"Now then, right now the Great Tomb of Nazarick is caught up in an unknown situation, and I already had Sebas survey our surroundings…"

With Momonga's nod, the head butler lifted his head to speak. "Completely different from the swamps that surrounded the Great Tomb of Nazarick, I could not confirm a single building, human, or monster in an eleven-kilometer radius. The Tomb is instead surrounded by grasslands."

"Good work, Sebas."

The meeting continued with the defense plan of the Tomb as well as the plan to hide Nazarick from plain sight. Tiamat took it upon herself to think about the Floor Guardians.

Even without Momonga commanding them, they had decided on the best course of action to run Nazarick, as well as the defense plan which was the product of Albedo and Demiurge, the two brightest minds in Nazarick. They accomplished a ridiculous amount even with the limited information they had.

NPC's taking actions or offering advice was something that was not available in YGGDRASIL.

Spectating the conversation amongst the Floor Guardians and Momonga had confirmed her hypothesis.

This new world was their current reality and the NPCs had become sentient. Even down to the lowest leveled staff of the Tomb of Nazarick.

This could be dangerous.

Even though they offered us their loyalty, the fact doesn't change that they were now living beings.

Does this mean that they were also equipped with free will? What was the probability that they would continue to be loyal to Nazarick?

'_What… what if they betray us…?'_

If they found their guild members and they decided to leave Ainz Ooal Gown, would the NPCs follow their creators or remain loyal to Nazarick?

Tiamat didn't have an NPC since she didn't want Ulbert and Tabula to nag her on the min-maxing of her NPC and its role. And Momonga was the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown, the possibility of his betrayal was much lower than hers…

Then she glanced at the Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown on her left ring finger. Even though she hadn't tried them at all, the ring itself had proven that items from YGGDRASIL worked in this world.

Her eyes widened in realization. World Item... there was a possibility that World Items worked in this reality as well.

She glanced at Momonga in concern. It was good that Momonga was a collector, and therefore pushed the guild to have the highest amount of World Items throughout YGGDRASIL. Even so, she didn't know what World Items he didn't have. There were a lot of unsolved mysteries in YGGDRASIL afterall.

Tiamat frowned at the thought. She would need to have a serious talk with Momonga about this later.

Another sigh escaped her lips. So much to do, so little time.

Suddenly, her ears perked up at what Momonga said, "Finally, I have a question for the Guardians. First of all, Shalltear! what kind of people are Tiamat and I to you?"

What? She stared shockingly at Momonga, where did that come from?!

She looked up and gazed longingly at him. "Lord Momonga, you are the incarnation of beauty, the most beautiful creature of all Nazarick! While Lady Tiamat is the most radiant of all Dragons. Her beauty shines like gems in my eyes."

Tiamat could feel her blood rushing to her face and ears as she blushed in response to the heartfelt compliment.

The fact that Shalltear didn't even pause to think about her answers added to Tiamat's embarrassment.

'_Why are you doing this Momo-chan!_' she wailed internally.

Ignorant of his friend's plight, Momonga continued. "Cocytus."

"Lord. Momonga. Who. Is. Mightier. Than. All. The. Guardians. And. Deserving. Of. The. Title. Of. The. Supreme. Overlord. Of. The. Great. Tomb. Of. Nazarick. Lady. Tiamat. The. Most. Gracious. And. The. Protector. Of. Nazarick."

"Aura."

"Merciful leaders with great foresight."

Tiamat's hand slowly tightened in discomfort.

"Mare."

"A-ah, very kind S-supreme Beings."

"Demiurge."

"A wise leader who acts decisively. Truly, Lord Momonga is a man worthy of the title inscrutable. Lady Tiamat is a Supreme Being who is kind, loving, and attentive towards the citizens of Nazarick and Supreme Beings."

Her hand slowly formed into a tight fist.

She didn't deserve those titles.

"Sebas."

"The one responsible for assembling all the Supreme Beings. In addition, the merciful leaders who did not abandon us, but stayed by our side until the very end."

"And finally, Albedo."

"You, Lord Momonga who rules over the Supreme Beings, and our highest, most exalted master. Lady Tiamat, you are the most important pillar of support to us, and to Lord Momonga, for standing by him when no one else would."

Hearing their words of praises made her want to cry. She was definitely not someone who deserved to bask in such unwavering love and loyalty.

Tiamat wanted to return their love, their loyalty. Instead of them saying that they wanted to be by our side, it was her who didn't deserve to have such wonderful people as comrades.

Honesty was necessary to establish loyalty. They had pledged themselves to be loyal, so in turn she had to be honest. "I am not someone deserving of such compliments," Tiamat said out-loud, feeling an anxiety attack as she said so.

"My Lady!" they yelled, clearly disappointed with her reply.

"I don't know about Momonga, but I'm still lacking in a lot of areas. I may be a Supreme Being, but that doesn't mean I'm perfect. I'm not as smart as Momo-chan or Demiurge in strategy, and I can't handle Administrative work as well as Albedo," she could feel their burning gazes towards her, and she turned her head away in shame.

"I cannot wield swords as well as Cocytus, nor can I tame beasts and throw spells like Aura and Mare. Moreover, I also can't destroy someone with my fists like Sebas."

"Lady Tiamat/My Lady!" the Floor Guardians shouted in horror.

Even Momonga put his hand on her shoulder.

"Please My Lady," Demiurge begged as he bowed deeper, followed by the other Floor Guardians.

"Do not put yourself down like that. It's true that Lord Momonga has unrivaled intellect, but that doesn't mean that you are any lesser than him." Tiamat thought she heard a light snort from Momonga.

"In fact, it is what sets you apart from the other Supreme Beings. You may believe that you are not well versed in a lot of things. But you have made it up through a lot of things such as your compassion and love towards unworthy beings like us." Aura and Mare nodded their heads in agreement.

"May my creator forgive me, but I would choose the Masters who stayed with us until the end than those who left us behind." Demiurge's hand was clutching his heart. He clenched and unclenched his hand as he wrinkled his suit.

A rush of blood ran up to her face, secretly happy at the Demon's declaration and her tail that was hidden by her dress wagged up and down.

The rest of the Floor Guardians seemed to agree with his statement as they refrained from commenting. In fact their eyes were lit up like puppies waiting for treats and she could see Demiurge and Cocytus wagging their tails expectantly.

There was nothing more that she could ask of the Floor Guardians as they had already given her their unconditional loyalty. Now she felt really bad for doubting them in the first place.

But sadness still lingered in her heart. Not because of her inadequacy as a Supreme Being, but for the Floor Guardians.

They felt like they've been abandoned.

Tiamat knew that the members of Ainz Ooal Gown didn't abandoned them or the guild. Real life simply caught up to them, but she knew it was hard for Momonga to accept that fact. It must be even harder for the Floor Guardians who didn't know anything.

She furiously blinked the tears back from her eyes.

This was no time for crying. They needed her.

They needed Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons.

She steeled her resolve, "T-thank you Demiurge, and the other Guardians as well" she smiled sincerely at all of them, and then to Momonga.

Then she looked at each and every one of them in their eyes. "That is why, today I promise you and all those in Nazarick! I will not abandon you. Not now, not ever. I will not forget your sadness and guilt. And even if I die..." she closed her eyes, praying deep in her heart that such an outcome would not happen to anyone she cared about.

"I will fight Hel, the Goddess of Death herself and open up the gates of hell to drag all of you back here. No matter how many times it would take me!"

Tiamat smiled at all of them, and they smiled back to her in return. Their Lady was too honest with her feelings; they could feel the sincerity in her words that caused devotion to bloom warmly in their hearts.

It would be impertinent for them to assume that she loved them, all of them. But how could they not thought of it that way, when she made such an ardent declaration?

"After all," Tiamat continued, as she put her hand on top of Momonga's skeletal palm that was resting on her shoulder and gave them her biggest grin, "You're all stuck with me now!"

"My Lady/Lady Tiamat!" was the heartfelt cry of their adorable Floor Guardians.

Momonga nodded to her and patted her hand. "Well said."


	4. CHAPTER 4: Carne Village

**Chapter 4: Carne Village**

* * *

**Hackslashbash: Reuploaded [09/04/2019]**

* * *

After the meeting, Tiamat decided to take a break in her room while Momonga took his time looking around Nazarick while disguised in a set of heavy plate armor he created.

Surprisingly despite being a dragon, Tiamat was not a collector; her room far less messy than Momonga's.

There was only a circular bed veiled with a see-through white canopy, which could fit three to four people, placed in the middle of the room. There also lay one long coffee table surrounded by a three-seat sofa and two single-seat sofas.

Then there was a door which led to a fully furnished white-gold marbled bathroom, but instead of a bathtub, she had installed a small pool in the middle of the bathroom, similar to an ancient roman bath house.

Looking at the room she had designed so long ago, Tiamat could only bitterly smile.

Even if she were able to afford such a luxurious bed IRL, she would have no place to put it back in her apartment.

'_I really went all out, huh? Still, not as intense as some of the other members though…'_

Staring at the bed, she decided to settle down to sleep for the night and continue her activities tomorrow. She changed into a spaghetti strapped white nightgown that had a wider finish on her thigh to accommodate her large dragon tail, one of the few draconic features she refused to delete with cash items.

Tiamat dove right into the huge bed and sank a little bit due to the softness of it. The pillows were scattered across the bed as she tried her darndest to sleep.

She was sleepy.

She wanted to sleep so very badly.

But there was just one tiny problem.

Her horns, inspired by the antler-like chinese dragon horns, were a little bit too long for her liking. Furthermore, IRL she used to sleep on her sides a lot. After all, it was the most comfortable position for her.

Now, she couldn't sleep on her side because of the horns.

Tiamat tried laying on her back but the horns got in the way of that as well.

'_I just want to sleep!_' she screamed internally.

She sat up on her bed, crossed her legs and started thinking. How do Dragons usually sleep?

She quickly came to a conclusion.

They sleep on their stomachs.

Tiamat, no, _Hannah_, had tried sleeping on her stomach before, but it was too uncomfortable; her boobs and huge tummy constantly getting in the way.

Should she try?

She landed again on her bed, flipping herself over so that her stomach pressed against the bed while strategically placing a soft pillow under her neck so that she could keep her head upright.

'_W-woah! This is incredible!_'

The bed was so fluffy, it accommodated the shape of her body; moreover her horns weren't stuck anywhere!

'_Ah... this is bliss._'

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

Tiamat was sleeping soundly as she heard a series of soft knocks on the door. Her eyes slowly opened, taking each and every small detail in the room, from the engravings on the coffee table, to the immaculately white ceiling, to the gentle flowing canopy of the bed. It was interesting, a point of view she had never seen before. Usually in YGGDRASIL, players didn't get such a view of the bed, since it was just a mere decoration.

That was unexpectedly nice.

She felt well rested, something she hadn't felt in years. Since she used to bake all the time, she usually stood in the kitchen for hours. Her shoulders and upper arms, as well as the balls of her feet were usually sore by the end of each day. But ever since they've landed on this new world, she had never felt better.

Tiamat sat up on the bed as the door to her room opened. She looked at the door to see Yuri Alpha bowing towards her.

"Good Morning, My Lady. I've been assigned as your escort today," Yuri said as she gently smiled while fixing her glasses.

"Escort?" Tiamat asked, truly confused.

She was in the Great Tomb of Nazarick, moreover, her room was on the 9th Floor. If intruders were to come to the Tomb, Albedo would notify the entire Guild as she was the overseer of Nazarick. Tiamat was sure that this was the safest place to be. "Why?" she continued.

Yuri pondered on the question given to her by one of the Supreme Beings. To her, it just made sense for one of the most important people in the world to be escorted inside or outside of Nazarick. But if she were to tell the whole truth, it would be that she was scared.

Even if she didn't show it.

And it was not just her.

She and all the sentient beings who lived to serve the Great Tomb of Nazarick were scared.

Even though the importance of their Supreme Beings' well being and happiness would be prioritized over everything, the denizens of the Tomb still desperately desired to ensure that they stay.

To make sure that they were not abandoned.

"Sebas-sama has given the order for me to escort you My Lady," Yuri decided to deflect to her superior instead of giving voice to her fear and worries. For her, their insecurities were not for the Supreme Beings to bear.

Tiamat gave it some thought; it didn't seem that important anyways. Momonga was likely the one who issued the order. After all, it couldn't hurt to be too careful, especially considering their bizarre circumstances. Who knows what could happen here…

"Well, do what you need to do Yuri Alpha," Tiamat decided on a safe answer. "Please take care of me."

She bowed again, albeit too gratefully. "Serving you will be my greatest pleasure."

Tiamat got off from her bed and walked to the bathroom, wanting to take a refreshing bath before going through the rest of the day. Yuri beat her to it, walking over to the bathroom before she could even open the door and quickly prepared the bath for her.

"You don't have to do that Yuri, I can do it myself," Tiamat said to Yuri.

"What nonsense, My Lady," she quickly turned around in Tiamat's direction and fixed her glasses.

'_Ah, her glasses just shone…_'

Apparently, Yuri Alpha was the serious glasses lady chara huh?

Tiamat covered her lips to stifle a small chuckle. Truly, Yuri was the spitting image of Yamaiko's, her creator, weakness. Meganekkos.

Yamaiko had a kind and gentle nature that could quickly switch to a demon's if someone were to badmouth her favorite characters. Tiamat was glad that Yuri was created in accordance to the image that Yamaiko obsessed over.

It made her feel like, somehow, Yamaiko was there with her.

"The bath has been drawn, My Lady."

Tiamat smiled endearingly at Yuri. "Thank you, Yuri."

She quickly took off her nightwear with Yuri's help and dipped her foot into the bath. She felt the high temperature of the water through her toes.

Tiamat had the feeling the water was steaming hot, but to her it was at a mild relaxing temperature, just like an indoor bath house at those fancy hotels back on earth.

Slowly, she submerged into the bath as the water overflowed from the tub, and she rested her back against the heated marble of the tub. Her shoulders began to relax as she submerged her head under the scalding water.

Her mind started to wander, about the new world, and the Great Tomb of Nazarick. They didn't know where they have landed, or in what kind of world they were in right now, but looking at how peaceful it was last night she didn't think that there were any intruders within Nazarick.

'_It would be great if we had a map…' _Tiamat contemplated placidly while blowing bubbles in the tub.

But considering how cautious Momonga would be, she didn't think that anyone would be allowed outside.

In YGGDRASIL's user interface, there was usually a map in the right hand corner, but she couldn't access any of the interface at all. Battles would be problematic if they weren't able to check their status…

'_I should try training later…_' she lazedly thought, swishing her tail around in the bubbly water.

She hadn't heard any news about Nazarick since she had fallen asleep, so she asked Yuri. "By the way, Yuri, did anything happen last night while I was asleep?"

Turning her head to the back slightly, she saw Yuri preparing her clothes near the entrance of the bathroom. Hearing Tiamat's question, Yuri then stopped and turned to her as she gave her a pleased smile.

"Yes, My Lady. I'm happy to say that there have been no intruders inside and outside of Nazarick last night. Moreover, Demiurge-sama has told us about Lord Momonga's intentions with regards to Nazarick and this world's future."

Tiamat hummed happily, completely letting the water's buoyancy lift her body as she floated on the bathwater. So she was right, nothing happened last night. Truly, the Floor Guardians did such an amazing job. "I'm glad to hear that. So, what did Momo-chan said?"

"Apparently, Lord Momonga and Demiurge-sama had a conversation last night. It seems that Momonga-sama is interested in World Domination."

Tiamat flopped over face-first in the bathtub as she inhaled a bit of water into her nose at the ridiculous news.

"W-*cough*-what?!"

As it turned out, while she was asleep, and without her knowing, the citizens of Nazarick decided to proudly rally themselves to the goal of World Domination under the name of Ainz Ooal Gown.

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

"Momo-chan!" Tiamat shoved the doors open to see him sitting on the sofa, holding a 『Mirror of Remote Viewing』while Sebas stood by his side.

She saw him and Sebas flinch at her abrupt entrance.

'_Did I open the door too loudly?_'

"Hannah-san?" Momonga asked, curious why Tiamat, his guild mate, came to him in such a...haggard appearance.

Her hair and dress were still wet from the bath. After hearing the news, she had immediately asked Yuri to help dress her as quickly as possible, before asking the maid to lead her towards where Momonga would be.

It must've come as a shock for the two of them; their perfect image of Lady Tiamat, supposedly, the Goddess of all Dragons must have been shattered.

Tiamat quickly entered the room as Yuri closed the door for her, taking brisk strides towards the skeletal Overlord. Before Sebas could stop her, she grabbed Momonga by his cloak. "Momonga..." she seethed. "You idiot!"

"Eh?"

Tiamat pulled him even closer. "Don't you 'Eh?' me! I thought you were the sensible one here, how could you come to that decision Momonga!"

"Eh? Eh?!" His skeletal face remained expressionless as his voice conveyed his panic and confusion. "No-wait, what did I do?"

"You know damn well what you did. You fucking idiot!" she cursed him in her mother language without realizing.

"Wait a second Hannah, I don't know what you're talking about?" he defended himself, his skeletal arms around her own which held his cloak. He managed to loosen her grip a bit.

"You said it to Demiurge, you said you wanted to take over this world! What in the world are you thinking Suzuki!" she shook the lapels of his cloak even harder, and she could feel the firm grip of his arm trying to peel hers away from his clothes.

Truly, what an idiotic notion!

She thought Momonga would much more careful about this than anyone. She thought he had thought long and hard about their future in this new world.

Why was she throwing such a fuss about this?

Simple: no one could achieve world domination.

World domination was a hypothetical power structure that was achieved when a single social or political authority held absolute power over all the inhabitants of the planet.

Back on earth there had been many existences throughout the history of mankind who aspired towards taking over the world.

Alexander the Great, he who tried to conquer the world with his power of waging wars through his unprecedented military campaign. But he died of illness.

Great Britain, a country that tried to dominate the world using trade and force before eventually becoming the Europe Arcology. Despite the educational benefits that the country provided, they were rejected by the countries it ruled.

United States and Europe, both countries that tried to dominate the world using trade and industry.

That attempt also failed, which resulted in the Great Economic Depression back in 1929 and 1939.

_Hitler_.

Did she really need to say anything about him?

In conclusion: war, force, money, and power couldn't be used to achieve world domination. Especially since the sacrifice of one or more countries were needed. No one would be willing to make that sacrifice.

Moreover, no one would consent to being ruled by outsiders.

If Momonga was truly aiming to take over the new world, it only left them with one option.

Using Religion or Faith as a weapon to induce fear of death and suppression of desires.

Forget about fear of death, no single religion had induced positive faith amongst anyone on earth.

There would always be victims of faiths in any religion in any century in time.

Hence, one couldn't achieve world domination.

"Momonga, you stupid, dunce, idiooot!" Tiamat smacked his bony rib cage over and over with her arms. On accident, she bumped into the mirror on her left side and two small beeps rang as if to confirm something. She immediately stopped what she was doing to look at the mirror, while the sound of clapping was heard behind her.

"Congratulations on activating the Mirror of Remote viewing, Lady Tiamat," Sebas applauded. Even though his straight face seemed sarcastic, his voice was sincere and pleased, while Yuri who stood beside Sebas joined him in applause soon after.

"『Mirror of Remote Viewing』?" Tiamat asked, looking at Sebas, then to the mirror. Both of her hands were being held by Momonga in an attempt to stop her from hitting him.

The mirror was a magic item used to display an image of a specific region. A very useful item in YGGDRASIL mainly for PK.

However, there were low level spells which obstructed information-gathering spells, rendering the mirror useless against skilled players. In addition, it was easy for users to be counterattacked by offensive counter-divination magic, so it was an average item at best.

Although she knew what the mirror did, she was still confused as to why Momonga would bother with such a trash item.

Seeing the confusion on her face, Momonga replied, "I was trying to use the『Mirror of Remote Viewing』to improve the security of Nazarick. But you beat me to it," he explained to her, letting go of her arms, while trying to figure out how it worked yet again. "Sorry to have you accompany me like this Sebas."

"Staying beside my master and following his orders is the butler that my creator, Touch Me-sama, created and the very reason of my existence, Lord Momonga."

Tiamat looked at the mirror curiously, her frustration forgotten. Momonga tried to zoom in on a small village that she had accidentally discovered, only to find a small swarm of people who quickly ran towards the center of the village.

"What's that? A festival?" she wondered out loud. The people were slowly crowding towards a large circle located at the center of the village. It must have been a festival, yet there were no decorations or festivities, just a bunch of people running in and out of their houses.

"No, that is not a festival," Sebas's steely voice interrupted, his eyes focused on what was shown on the mirror. She could feel the disgust in his words.

Momonga then zoomed in on one of the faster moving figures. As it turned out, there were knights who were riding horses that were massacring the villagers one by one.

"How curious," she mentioned to Momonga.

"Indeed. From the look of their armor, as well as the execution of their movement, I don't think that they're bandits. Their moves are too calculated."

That was true, Tiamat nodded in agreement.

They had divided themselves into groups to scour the village, the vanguard leading the way, while a small group in the middle separated themselves into the small gaps between the houses. This continued until they were evenly distributed throughout the whole village.

It was a bizarre scene. The『Mirror of Remote Viewing』had an HD like quality to it. She could see the blood pooling on the blades of grass in crystal clear quality.

Yet, she did not feel even remotely disgusted.

Tiamat felt pity towards the villagers, afterall, they were far too weak and defenseless to be fighting against a fully equipped knight. The body count continued to rise, but the desire to save them felt muted.

She glanced at Momonga, who just watched the Mirror without any reaction. How could he? He couldn't make any expressions, or even raise an eyebrow on what was happening. For her, it was easy to read Suzuki's expression, since he was a very expressive person. But this Suzuki, _Momonga_, didn't have any expressions.

Instead of mulling over it, she decided to directly ask him. "Penny for your thoughts?"

He scoffed, continuously changing the view of the village, his red orbs still stuck to what the mirror was showing them.

"If you asked me if I wanted to save them, the answer would be no," he decided.

"Why is that?"

"There is no merit. There is no reason, value, or benefit in rescuing them," He replied emotionlessly.

"I see. Well, I agree with you Momo-chan. There is no merit," she smiled at him and at the mirror. "For you at least."

He finally peeled his eyes from the mirror to look at her, "What do you mean?"

"Well, you've tried using magic with Aura and Mare yesterday in the Arena, right?"

He nodded in affirmation, but his eyes told her he didn't understand her intentions.

Tiamat's grin widened, and she waved her long sleeves around. "Then, let me experiment on the knights Momo-chan!"

She hadn't tried anything other than teleportation within Nazarick and cooking, which had nothing to do with her character skills. Most of her abilities were passive, which meant that she needed someone to test the extent of her powers.

More importantly, she had to know whether her Defensive skills worked as well as they did in YGGDRASIL.

Momonga nodded, finally understanding her objectives. Tiamat had figured he would also want to play around with his skills, but it would be safer if she were the one to go out instead. If her defensive abilities worked in this world, then it would mean that Momonga would also be able to use any skills he wanted on her since she would not receive any substantial damage over it.

He sighed softly, twiddling around with the mirror to look over the village.

"『Extend Magic - True Appraisal』."

"Well, considering their levels, I don't think you'll have any problems. So do what you want Hannah-san. I'll notify you on the locations of the surviving villagers and update you on possible enemy reinforcements through 『Message』."

"Hai! Thanks Momo-chan." Since her new body's temperature was higher, the water that clung to her dress and hair had already evaporated. She then swapped her simple outfit to her Red Empress Hanfu Dress that she usually equipped as well as making sure that she hid her horns and tail since she was going to a human village.

"Sebas, inform Albedo next door to put Nazarick on maximum alert, after that, Yuri will follow Tiamat. Also, ask Albedo to prepare support units just in case Tiamat is unable to retreat. The units must be adept at stealth or have the ability to go invisible."

Sebas bowed as he received his order. "I understand Lord Momonga, but I wish to request the task of defending Lady Tiamat to me."

"That's fine, any of you will do. Then, Yuri can relay my order to Albedo."

"I understand, My Lord." Yuri then immediately left the room to pass on Momonga's order.

Momonga kept switching the image on the mirror until he finally landed it on two girls, presumably sisters, as the older one was leading the younger one away from the knights.

"Shall we go, Sebas? Afterall..." Tiamat's voice trailed off, looking at Sebas. His eyes carried a heavy weight of determination, and for some reason at that very moment Sebas reminded her of Touch Me-san. "Saving someone in trouble is common sense. Right, Sebas?"

She could hear Momonga who was sitting beside her sharply inhale despite lacking the need to breathe. He may have lost his empathy as an undead, but he still valued his friends.

Both of them owe it to Touch Me-san afterall. Without him, they wouldn't have got where they were.

"As you've said, My Lady," Sebas agreed with her.

"Now then, we'll get going Momo-chan. I'll be back before you know it!" Tiamat pulled out a bamboo coolie hat with black veil draping from its rim out of a black-purple rift. Even though the hat had no defensive qualities, it provided her with a modicum of anti-divination protection. As a dragon heteromorph, she couldn't really equip anything better anyways, due to the race's heavy equipment restrictions.

"『Gate』."

As she stepped through the gap in reality, the scenery changed to what she had seen in the mirror.

The two girls who were running away were now huddled together. The older one, in an act of desperation, tried to protect the younger one by bracing her back towards the knight. Before he could swing his sword towards the older girl, Tiamat stood in front of the sword.

『High-Tier Physical Immunity V』a skill that nullified all physical attacks below level 80. Many advanced tank classes had granted this skill back in YGGDRASIL. Tiamat was relying on this particular skill to trigger in response to the knight's sword strike.

Sadly, the sword didn't even get to touch her, and before it could have landed anywhere near her, Sebas had thrown a small pebble at the knight's head. Although the knight was wearing a helmet, his head still burst at the small but powerful impact.

Shocked by the instantaneous death of his teammate, the rest of the knights trembled in fear. They even forgot to point their swords in front of them. One of them, the one closest to the knight who just died, buckled his knees and fell on his butt

She could smell the stench of urine coming from him.

"Six fully equipped knights chasing down two little girls? Disgusting," she commented. She hadn't felt much empathy for the villagers in the beginning, but seeing them suffering right before her eyes reminded her of some scenes from her past.

"A woman, and a... butler?" one of the guards incredulously muttered under his breath. The whole detachment was still shocked by their sudden appearance.

To be honest, she was not that terrified of these knights. There were things far scarier and more traumatizing than a bunch of pathetic men swinging their swords at unsuspecting weak girls.

Tiamat looked over at the two girls and her eyes softened at the sight. The little one was beyond terrified as she continued hugging her sister around the waist while the elder sister just confusedly looked at her and Sebas, wondering why they came to their rescue.

To be perfectly honest, she had no desire to tarnish the innocence of these girls with violence, but a head did just explode in front of them.

Tiamat clenched her teeth at the thought.

What to do... what to do?

If she used Phobos Ambience, the girls could get caught up in it as well. She also didn't want to order Sebas since it could get messy, and she definitely didn't want to further traumatize these children.

"Who are you?!" desperately asked one of the braver knights.

Tiamat lifted her veil to glance at the one yelling knight clearly. When her glowing violet eyes met his, he fell to the ground as he erupted into purple flames, screaming until his heart stopped beating.

"Goodness..." she immediately let go of the veil in her hands and let it cover her eyes again. "I didn't know that you knights were so weak that you've even died from a 4th-tier passive magic,『Asmodeus's Gaze』."

"D-demon!"

"Me? Demon?" she questioned, tilting her head, pretending to be confused. "Wouldn't that be you, who massacred innocent villagers? Aren't you the very demon who takes up arms against weak children?" she rebutted as she stared down at the rest of the knights.

Suddenly, she heard two beeps in her head as she received a『Message』from Momonga.

[It seems that a group of mages have encircled the village. You need to escape, Hannah-san, we have no idea what they're capable of.]

[Noted.]

[...]

[What?]

[Are you not retreating?] Momonga asked incredulously.

[Don't worry Momo-chan, they died instantly from 4th-tiered magic. A passive ability too. I should be able to handle them.] Tiamat confidently replied.

[Hah…just be careful, alright?] Momonga wearily gave in.

[I will. See you later Momo-chan~!] she cut off the 『Message』.

Tiamat focused back on the knights before her.

Well, since she was here to use these knights as test subjects, what other skills should she use?

Should she try summoning?

"Check for damages and then cover their eyes," she ordered Sebas.

"Understood," Sebas moved towards the two girls.

The two girls continued to tremble. Tiamat really couldn't blame them. They were probably thinking that they would hurt them just like the knights. Nothing good could come from trusting a stranger.

"『Spawn of Bahamut』." A mid-tier summoning skill that allowed her to summon up to ten Wyverns or three Young Dragons once per day. She decided to summon three Young Dragons, since those were obviously cooler.

The eyes of the knights widened in fear as they all took a step back in terror.

"So you can chase after young girls but not someone who can fight back, is that it?" Tiamat sneered at them. At this point, they started running away towards the village, probably trying to rally together.

Tiamat looked at the three Young Dragons she had summoned. They were red baby Dragons, and their yellow eyes looked at her in wonder and amazement.

'_Waaaaaah, they're so cute!_' she inwardly squealed.

They made purring noises similar to a cat's, but louder. It was more of a growl, but the softness of it prevented it from being mistaken for aggression.

The rest of the knights ran away at the sight of the dragons.

She wondered if this was how that old TV show character felt when she had her baby dragons.

'_What was it called? Game…? Game of Chairs?_'

She shook herself out of her reminiscing. She had to check if her babies could understand simple commands and differentiate targets. "Children, attack the knights and protect the villagers," Tiamat ordered them.

They growled again in excitement and almost immediately flapped towards the direction where the knights had been running off to.

As soon as the baby dragons were gone, she heard the sound of screaming in the distance and with her enhanced sight, she saw that they were indeed attacking the knights and protecting the villagers.

Such great children!

"My Lady," Sebas notified. "I have checked the two human girls for injuries. So far, they only have bruises and nothing life threatening."

Tiamat nodded, thankful for the information. "Thank you, Sebas."

She kneeled in front of the two girls, making sure that Asmodeus Gaze was disabled before lifting her veil so that they could see her better.

"Are you girls alright?" she asked softly.

After they had time to study her face, their shoulders slackened and relaxed. Then they started to whimper and cry loudly. They must've been really scared.

Truly, she pitied them.

Children should receive a lot of love and care. To know and understand that these girls would have to grow up a lot faster than other children because of this incident pained her heart.

Tiamat pulled the girls in a tight embrace.

"It's alright, it's okay, you're safe now," she assured them. But her kind words only made them cry harder. They were not in pain, but relieved. Relieved that they could live to see another day, and she understood that.

"T-thank you, kami-sama," said the little one, as she wiped her tears with her chubby hands.

Knowing that they needed some time for themselves, Tiamat let go of the girls. "『Light Healing』." A 1st-tier healing spell that mended mild injuries.

The girls were covered with a warm green light and Tiamat watched in fascination as the bruises on their arms and legs slowly faded away.

"『Avernus Sanctuary』." A yellow-red sphere enveloped the two girls. "This is a protective barrier. Stay here and you'll be safe. Don't go out of the sphere, okay?"

Both girls nodded, still holding each other.

"I'll fetch you later, so both of you be good girls and stay, alright?" After making sure that both of them understood, Tiamat stood up and turned to the direction of the village. "Let's go, Sebas."

"Yes, My Lady."

Right as they turned to head towards the village, Tiamat picked out the faint sound of the girls thanking her. She turned around to give them a small smile and left.

Not long after, Sebas and her arrived at the village.

"My Lady, allow your humble servant to handle these scum."

"Hmmm, thank you for your offer Sebas, but I kind of want to see my summons in action. Let's go hide ourselves in the meanwhile."

After saying that, the two sat back and observed the dragonlings in action.

It was safe to say that Tiamat was very proud of her three children.

Their mighty roars shattered the air and for the knights, it signalled their death.

One after the other, the armored knights fell down, either dismantled like a chicken by their jaws that bit and claws that caught, or burned by their fearsome breath. Moreover, any knight who attempted to approach a villager was bitten, thrown into the air, before falling down with a crack as one of the dragonlings stomped their head into a paste.

The Young Dragons roared again with joy. As if to say '_We did this, we did it!_'

Tiamat looked on dispassionately.

'_Why don't I feel anything?'_

The knights may have been the aggressors, but even still, real flesh and blood humans were getting torn to pieces before her.

So why did she feel perfectly fine with it?

Tiamat pushed the thought out of her head.

'_I can worry about that later. For now, I need to make sure all the filth dies,'_ she focused back on observing.

The knights were trained to fight in any situation, but their swords did nothing to the tough leathery skin of the Dragonlings. If the dragonlings only had tough skin, they would not have had so much trouble, but the infernal beasts also bore sharp teeth, nails, and each was almost three times bigger than a knight. Despite their size, they were nimble, and if a knight aimed for their wings, they simply jumped or swiped them away with their tail.

When they managed to rip apart the one that kept grating their ears with his cries, they cackled in delight, as if to savor the despair and terror of the pitiful humans who were like bugs before them.

The Baby Dragons were clearly toying with the knights. Each swipe, bite, and stomp was playful. To them, it was funny how the humans were so much more weaker than them.

Even the Captain has ordered the rest of the knights to protect him.

"I'm not someone to die here! All of you hurry up and protect me! Be my shield!"

But of course, nobody had moved to such a selfish request. They were too busy saving their own lives.

"How pathetic," Tiamat muttered out loud.

"Indeed," Sebas agreed with her. "Their movements have no power or grace. Furthermore, for the Captain to ask his subordinates to save himself is the lowest of the low," a shadow crossing his expression.

How pitiable, they were chewed by Dragons while they were still alive, and then in death, they were chewed again by Sebas's statement.

In the end, there were only a few knights left.

"That's enough children," Tiamat's soft voice rang clearly throughout the area below. She undid her invisibility scroll and slowly descended onto the earth, her dress and veil fluttering in the wind. Sebas fell down onto the grass first before offering her his hand to take so that she could regain her balance.

The Baby Dragons flew into a flurry of excitement upon hearing her voice, and they threw away the body of the Captain to run towards her.

Tiamat opened both of her arms to embrace the Baby Dragons who slammed into her, petting their heads as they knocked her to the ground. Their foreheads rubbed against her body, and the whole clearing could clearly hear the sound of happy growls.

In an instance, the surviving knights became even more on guard. The Dragons were scary, but the one who could control them would be downright terrifying.

"Greetings everyone," Tiamat stopped petting them and took a step forward so that the Dragonlings were behind her. "I am Hannah Annafelowz of Ainz Ooal Gown."

Everybody just stared at her in mute shock.

"If you throw down your swords and surrender, I will guarantee you your lives, but if you still want to fight-"

One by one the rest of the knights threw away their swords to surrender. A total of four blades were thrown to the ground.

"My, aren't you all eager. Very well. In exchange for your lives, you will go back to your Masters to tell them this. So listen well," she walked towards one of the knights and stared at him dead in the eyes.

"This land is now protected under my name and the name of Ainz Ooal Gown. If you make anymore trouble after this, I will guarantee the downfall of your country."

The knight in front of her nodded as hard as he could. Clearly, he wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible.

For a few minutes, they did not do anything but stare at her.

"What are you doing? Do you still want to play with my children?"

They jerked their bodies and ran away as fast as possible.

"Oh my, I forgot something Sebas," Christ, this haughty act was getting tiring, but it would be better if she could make a statement so that they wouldn't come back ever again.

The callousness with which she treated the death of the knights still unsettled her.

"My Lady," he responded.

"How many messengers does it take to pass a message?"

"At least one, My Lady."

"So we only need one right?" she confirmed with Sebas, forcing herself to smirk. "Children~ you can snack on one knight each. No more than that or else you'll get a stomachache, okay?"

The Baby Dragons growled happily and immediately flapped their wings towards the knights of their choosing to munch on them. Their screams were muffled inside the Baby Dragons' mouth.

The one that survived ran away even faster.

Tiamat sighed internally. That was one problem down.

She looked at the rest of the villagers and saw the confusion and unease on their faces. Instead of being happy that they were saved from those horrible knights, somehow it felt like that one quote:

"Out of the frying pan and into the fire," she muttered under her breath.

The knights did brutally massacre the villagers, but she had proven herself to be far stronger than those knights.

Now how to approach the situation…

"You're alright now, so be at ease," Tiamat gently mentioned to the villagers, taking off her hat and passing it to Sebas.

"Y-you..." one of the villagers tried to muster up some words, but he was too scared to say anything in front of the woman who had human eating baby dragons at her beck and call. His eyes kept on sliding towards the Baby Dragons who were still munching on the remains of the knights.

"It's alright, these children are mine. I promise you they won't do anything to harm you."

As soon as she said that, a bunch of exhales of relief were blown out.

'_Not that I can really blame them… Man-eating dragons would put anyone on edge.'_

An elderly man and an old lady that was presumably his wife stepped forward towards her. "Thank you very much for saving this village. In our present state, we-we don't have much, but please take anything you need," he offered. Him and his wife bowed gratefully.

"Well, we can discuss that later. More importantly, I saved two sisters and left them in the forest. I will go bring them here, and then we can negotiate. Will you wait for me here?"

"Yes, gladly!" they said, bowing again.

"Then, please collect those who are hurt in a house so that I can take a look at them later. Also, let us prepare a proper burial for the rest of the villagers," Tiamat said, turning back towards the forest.

Soon after the village chief started giving orders while she and Sebas walked towards the forest with the Baby Dragons trailing behind her footsteps.

After Tiamat fetched the girls and brought them to the town square, the chief and his wife invited her and Sebas to their lovely home. It was very old and very small; the furniture and walls were moldy and it seemed like the house would fall over any time soon.

The very definition of poverty. She could relate.

After negotiating with the chief, Tiamat agreed that they would give her a sum of money. But her main goal here was to collect information. Maps, titles, lands, political structure of the country, social structure, economic structure, down to the local governance like local vegetables, even down to the food they served on the table.

They gave her a map that detailed the entire continent. The village they were currently at was called Carne Village and was a part of Re-Estize Kingdom, located on the border between the Re-Estize Kingdom and the Baharuth Empire. Both the Kingdom and the Empire were Monarchies, although the Empire had undergone a great change in their political system by massacring many nobles of the country.

Next, she asked about money. Money was divided into three types of coins: copper, silver, and gold.

They three standards of currency were then divided through standardized mass. The price of one gold coin was equal to the mass of the silver coins, and the price of one silver coin was equal to the mass of copper coins.

Their sources of food were mostly potatoes, carrots, and the resources from the Great Forest of Tob. When asked about their cooking, the chief and his wife sheepishly explained that they didn't do much cooking in the village.

The villagers usually just boiled their food with water to create soup. They didn't eat farm animals since farm animals were far too precious; chickens provided eggs while cows provided milk.

Since they were a small village, they didn't know much aside from the history of the village as well as the passing gossip from merchants or traveling doctors. Even still, Tiamat felt that this was plenty of information to go by.

The knights who had attacked the village wore the Baharuth Empire's armor, and the chief suspected the Empire to be the culprits since the relations between the two were getting worse, causing an annual war between the Kingdom and the Empire. Moreover, to the south, there was a country called the Slane Theocracy, which was also close to Carne Village.

'_Ah… I should've saved one of them for questioning. It's not impossible that some third party is trying to create conflict between the Kingdom and the Empire._'

After pondering this tidbit for a moment, Tiamat gestured for the chief to continue.

The chief explained that there was a fortress city, called E-Rantel, which was the biggest city in the area and the best place to gather information.

As it turned out, E-Rantel actually had an adventurer's guild. So if anyone from YGGDRASIL landed in this world, they would surely have gone there. Tiamat thought going there could be promising.

Even though they had paid her with information, they still wanted to pay her with money for saving the girls and securing the surviving villagers before it was too late. They did mention that they didn't have enough to pay her right away, so in exchange, she asked them to teach her how to read, as well as the common sense of the continent as the rest of the payment.

They felt like the payment she had requested was too little, but for her this was more than enough.

However, she did ask for their aid sometime later in the future, to which they immediately agreed.

As soon as they had finished negotiating and exchanged information as well as payment, Sebas who was standing outside the house immediately led her towards the main hall where most of the wounded were laid.

Tiamat didn't want to reveal too much to the villagers, but since she had healed the bruises of both of those girls, the least she could do was heal what she could through『Light Heal』. The rest of the villagers whose wounds were too heavy to heal using 1st-tier magic would simply die.

'_But… they're people who need help. Help that only I can give…'_

As sympathy for the villagers flowed through her, a bestial voice rumbled in her subconscious.

'_Why? Why would we help inferior beings for nothing? We've already done more than enough.'_

Tiamat blinked her eyes. Why should she care? These villagers held no value for Nazarick, and drawing even more attention to herself could lead to further problems later on.

As Momonga had said, the current situation no longer held any merit for them. She had gotten to experiment with a wide array of skills, and in return she saved the remaining villagers who were not maimed by the knights for the information she had received.

Anyways, resurrecting people wasn't even possible for her build.

But even if she could, why would she do that?

For them,『Light Heal』was already like a miracle. It would be easy to guess which one would be more bothersome. A lady who saved the village, or a lady who resurrected the dead.

If they had more things to offer as payment, she would probably go back to Nazarick for a 『Resurrection』scroll. They had plenty of trash fifth-tier scrolls to spare.

Truly, the village had nothing to offer them. They died to the first slash of the sword.

The humans here were weak and feeble.

Her lips curved downwards.

'_Why am I thinking like this? Didn't I use to be human just a few hours ago?'_

Despite her conflicted feelings, Tiamat hoped that at least the people of this continent would all be this weak, so that Momonga could have a peace of mind, even for a short while.

As she continued healing their bruises, one of the villagers informed the rest of the village that the burial preparations had been completed. Most of them excused themselves as she assured them that no one was holding them back.

Tiamat took a look at the more injured villagers. One had a particularly vicious cut from his shoulder to hips while another had three stab wounds in his stomach.

She took a step towards them.

'_Are you really going to waste mana on these flesh bags?'_

"I don't know why I'm thinking like this, and honestly, as long as Nazarick is safe I don't really mind," Tiamat put her hand on a more injured villager, "But I'll be damned if I turn into those shitbags back on Earth."

"『Full Cure』."

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

Soon after she finished healing the rest of the villagers, she spectated the burial ceremony together with Sebas and the Baby Dragons.

"What do you think, Sebas?"

"I think we are done here, My Lady. Excellent job, as expected. Your servant Sebas stands in awe of your prowess."

Tiamat sighed, leaning against a big tree that was quite far from the burial ceremony. Since they were both Dragons, well Draconian in Sebas's case, they had no trouble looking over the ceremony from such a distance. "You don't have to go that far, Sebas. I do apologize for taking some time with my decisions," One of the baby dragons nuzzled her stomach while the other two played by themselves behind them.

My, such needy children. She didn't mind though.

"There is no need to apologize, but it's true that saving the village did take some time. Would you like to take a break, My Lady?"

"No there is no need for that, as you know, Dragons have pretty good stamina. What about you Sebas? If you're tired or fatigued you can take a break."

"Thank you for your kindness, but it would be unwise for a butler such as I to rest while you are still working. With the magic items given to me by Touch Me-sama, I won't be affected by fatigue. Do allow me to stay by your side for today, My Lady."

As she agreed to his request, she could hear the wails of the two girls who had lost their parents as well as the faint smell of salt carried by the wind.

Tiamat continued to focus on one of the children she had summoned, and petted him until the ceremony was over.

Resurrecting them held no merit. She had already healed everyone she could to the best of her capabilities.

They had nothing else to offer. She had already done more than enough.

So why did her eyes feel so damp?

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

When Gazef Stronoff arrived at Carne village, he expected the place to be desolate, completely destroyed, and filled with the stench of blood and rotting corpses.

But instead he found the village mostly intact with many of the villagers working together to repair the damaged buildings.

Amongst the villagers he could see two strangers, surrounded by three small dragons. They circled around the red-haired woman, as if protecting her from harm, while she lightly patted their heads.

The dragonlings seemed to bask in her attention.

She wore a dress that looked very unfamiliar to the Kingdom, Empire, or even the Theocracy. Her dress was layered, with white at its base, gold embroidery woven throughout the clothing, and a loose red see-through version of the same dress on the outside.

The elaborate outfit complimented her long fiery hair that cascaded from her neck to her back, and her amethyst eyes shone gently like a gem under the moonlight.

Even from afar, she stood out from other brown and blond haired villagers. Her movements were poised and graceful, even more graceful than the nobles he had seen in the Kingdom.

Her beauty could not be compared to the Golden Princess, for the Golden Princess possessed an aura that conveyed purity, kindness, and honesty.

But this woman was different.

The stranger held a different kind of aura compared to the small Princess. She looked gentle, compassionate, and wise beyond her age. If he were to be perfectly honest with himself, she looked like a Goddess.

Behind her, she was accompanied by a white haired butler that was dressed in a traditional butler uniform. He may have looked gentle, but his eyes were as sharp as an eagle, and Gazef had felt his gaze ever since he landed his eyes on the Red Goddess.

When he approached the Chief of the village, the Chief and the rest of the villagers bowed in respect, doubting their very sight as he rode his horse towards them.

"The Kingdom's Warrior Captain, Gazef Stronoff." the Chief called him by his title in awe.

"Good afternoon, you must be the Chief of this village," he greeted the old man. "Could you introduce me to this person beside you?"

Before the Chief could say anything, the woman took a step forward and introduced herself.

"Pleased to meet you, Warrior Captain Gazef Stronoff," She tilted her head. "I am Hannah Annafelowz of Ainz Ooal Gown. I was traveling with my companion Sebas when we saw this village being attacked mercilessly by knights, so we came to their rescue."

As he approached her, the butler's stance became more rigid, prepared to attack him at a moment's notice.

But his eyes were still glued on her presence. She was not like any of the maidens he had seen in the Kingdom or even the Empire. Her beauty was unparalleled and her voice soft and inviting. Most importantly, aside from her appearance she must also have possessed a kind and gentle heart, for she had saved the village.

Not to mention the _DRAGONS _lazily rolling at her feet.

Truly, this woman was a Goddess.

As she held his gaze, he felt like his entire existence was being judged on a pair of scales.

He immediately dismounted from his horse, and bowed deeply on the ground. He saw the butler give a subtle nod of approval.

"Thank you for saving this village, I have no words that can adequately phrase your generosity."

The air seemed to tremble.

The Warrior-Captain was the most prominent man in the kingdom, save for the king himself. It was quite shocking that such a man would bow and scrape before a stranger like her, in a world where people were so clearly divided amongst each other.

One could tell Gazef's character from the way he readily dismounted and bowed to her despite their difference in status.

Soon after, one of his troops ran into the square. He was panting heavily, and had an urgent report. In a high-pitched voice, his comrade yelled. "Warrior-Captain! We've sighted a lot of people around the village! They've surrounded the village and they're closing in!"

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

Tiamat peeked out from the abandoned church to observe the outskirts of the village.

From what she could see, there was a group of at least twenty people. There were slowly advancing towards the village while maintaining a small distance between each other.

But they didn't wear any armor like the knights. Although that didn't mean that their clothes weren't enchanted, she had absolutely no clue as to their capabilities unless she used 『Appraisal』 on them.

However, the clothes on their backs was the last thing to worry about.

It was the winged monsters behind them.

Archangel Flames, a 3rd-tier summon that mainly kited around enemies with their swords while flitting around in mid-air. They were definitely Angels from YGGDRASIL. Even though they were just low leveled monsters, the fact still remained that they were from the game.

Gazef watched them from her side while Sebas stood behind her. The dragon children were all playing around outside the church. "So, who are they Warrior-Captain Gazef? What do they want? I don't think there is anything precious in the village for them to take."

"You don't know either Lady Hannah?" he looked at her in shock. She bit her cheek in helplessness. How was she supposed to know? "Well, if it's not you they seek, there must only be one thing."

Tiamat met his gaze in understanding.

The knights were actually from the Slane Theocracy, not the Baharuth Empire. They were using the Empire's armor to mislead the Kingdom into thinking that the atrocities were committed by the Empire.

What for?

To assassinate Gazef Stronoff, the strongest man in the Kingdom.

'_Think…'_

After they had finished massacring the whole village, what would the knights do?

They would stay hidden and out of sight.

Then Gazef who received orders from the Kingdom to eradicate knights from enemy countries, even going as far as to visit from the front-lines, would go to the village only to see it empty and littered with corpses. But before he would realize that it was a trap, he was going to be ambushed from both inside and outside the village.

He must've been a thorn on both the Kingdom and the Theocracy's sides. Even the Kingdom, where he swore his allegiance to, sent him away to his death.

Tiamat made a mental note to mark both of those countries as dangerous.

"My, my, they must really hate you Gazef-dono. Must be hard being the strongest man in the Kingdom," she jabbed at him.

His eyes widened, as if he didn't expect her, a stranger, to figure it out.

"It comes with the job of Warrior-Captain. However… this is troubling," he shrugged, looking again into the distance. "Judging by the way the other side has so many people who can summon angels, they must be from the Slaine Theocracy, and it's clear that the people carrying out this operation must be a special operations unit: the legendary Six Scriptures. It would seem that both in numbers or ability, the opposition is superior to us."

Tiamat could hear him heave a small sigh, indicating the difficulty he was in. He might have seemed merely depressed on the surface, but she could tell that he was seething with anger and panic.

How could he still be so loyal to his Kingdom, even when he knew that he was being betrayed?

She looked again at the Archangel Flames in the distance surrounding the church, offering him no escape.

This is where she came to a realization.

Truly, the man in front of her was amazing indeed.

He knew that he was surrounded, but even still, he made sure that the villagers were safe. He didn't use the villagers as bait to lure the special operation unit away. If he wanted to, he could have just escaped as quickly as possible back to the Kingdom by exchanging his armor with one of the villagers.

There were only about twenty people outside; they wouldn't be able to cover so much ground.

He came knowing he was going to die that day.

'_Seriously amazing..._'

Tiamat glanced behind her seeing Sebas, standing against the wall, most likely thinking how they should return to Nazarick. She had also received reports from Sebas earlier that the Eight-Edged Assassin had already arrived with reinforcements and were prepared to kill the villagers and even the special units to whisk them away back to Nazarick.

But that would be a waste of her efforts.

She had already sent a warning to one of the soldiers who was probably on his way to Slaine Theocracy. If they were to find out that everyone and everything had been destroyed, it would paint the names Hannah Annafelowz and Ainz Ooal Gown in an unsightly light.

Tiamat had given them the message to warn their Masters to not harm the village. It would be strange for the one who saved the village to also be the one who massacred them.

There was no choice but to defeat the special units, huh?

What did she just get herself into?

She had thought they were just gonna save a village, collect information, then go back to Nazarick.

Sadly, things turned out to be much more troublesome that what they needed to be.

Tiamat sighed and looked at the ceiling.

She wanted to play with Aura and Mare, she wanted to cook, she wanted to sleep…

She wanted to go back.

Tiamat felt the Warrior-Captain's gaze on her and turned towards him. His eyes shone with hope as he said, "Lady Hannah, if it's alright with you, I would like to hire you."

Sebas who stood behind her was seething in anger, his gaze cold and sharp, as if the Warrior in front of her had insulted her. But the Warrior remained oblivious.

"Please name your price and I will meet it, no matter how much," he pleaded.

Sebas quickly answered on her behalf. "I would have to refuse, Warrior-Captain. My Lady's services are much more expensive than what you could probably afford," Sebas walked towards the warrior and stopped in front of her, as if to shield her from Gazef-dono.

"Even loaning one of the Dragons that you have will also be fine," he said, sounding even more desperate.

Sebas stood even straighter. "You have to be aware, Warrior-Captain. My Lady saved the village and healed the injured out of the kindness of her heart. A duty which is supposed to be _your_ job, Warrior-Captain."

'_Thank you so much Sebas! Now we can get back home faster!'_

"I see..." Gazef closed his eyes in understanding, "then what if I ordered you in accordance to the Kingdom's laws?"

Sebas's eyes held a horrifying gaze. "Then that would be the worst decision you could possibly make. If you keep on insisting, I would have to put up a little bit of resistance."

Her eyes landed on a group of eight-edged assassins hidden on the ceiling above Gazef Stronoff, ready to take his neck at any given time when commanded to.

Before things could escalate, she laid her hand gently on Sebas's shoulder. After a brief stare down between the butler and the warrior, Sebas complied and went beside her.

"You are mistaken, Gazef-dono," Tiamat casually responded. "Even if you ordered us to comply in accordance with your country's law, your law won't be able to bind us since we are not citizens of the Re-Estize Kingdom. I am merely a wandering traveler. Therefore, you won't be able to use any of your rank, status, or political power to move me," she smiled at him, far from finished. "Moreover, as my esteemed butler had mentioned, if you keep on insisting to use your power to conscript me then I will have to defend myself."

Tiamat had slightly bristled at his suggestion to force her into submission through the Kingdom's laws.

That was why she returned it back to him two fold.

Gazef looked at her wordlessly, as she held his gaze. His brown eyes were determined, and he looked like he wasn't the type to easily back down.

But she was also the same. More importantly, she hated being coerced into something she didn't want to do.

That was why Gazef was the first one to avert his gaze to look back at the Archangel Flames.

He gave a small chuckle at her reply. "You call it self-defense, but wouldn't be a frightening massacre? We would be eaten by your Dragons before we could even cross blades with the gentlemen from the Slane Theocracy."

"Glad you could understand," Tiamat let out a small laugh, and before he could notice, she signaled the eight-edged assassin to move away from the Warrior-Captain.

Damn, that was dangerous. If she hadn't stopped Sebas fast enough, another head would have went flying.

Gazef looked at her shooing something from behind him, but when he turned around, he found nothing. Then he narrowed his eyes and nodded, albeit dejected that he wasn't able to recruit the strange lady to his side.

"Well then, Lady Hannah, please take care of yourself. You too 'esteemed Butler-san'," And before she knew it, he knelt in front of her, removed his metal gauntlet, and took her right hand. "Once again, thank you for saving the village, Lady Hannah."

Tiamat could feel his lips on the back of her hand, and when she was thinking of slowly sliding her hand away from his kiss, his hand held hers even tighter, "I am truly, truly grateful to you for protecting these innocent villagers from being slaughtered. Also, I know it is very selfish of me and I have no authority to make you do anything..." he said.

'_I swear, if he doesn't let go now…!'_

Although he treated her hand with great gentleness and care, Tiamat wanted nothing more but for him to let go. "But I hope you can protect the villagers here, just one more time. Right now, I have nothing to give you, but I hope that no matter what, you will heed my plea… I beg you."

"Warrior-Captain!" Sebas chided. "You are acting discourteously towards Lady Hannah!"

She raised her left hand to stop Sebas. If this went on, Sebas would've cut off his hand. "Sebas, I'll handle this..." she sighed.

Her gaze returned to the Warrior-Captain who was kneeling in front of her.

"Should you ever visit the Royal Capital, I will give anything you desire. I promise in the name of Gazef Stronoff," he persisted.

Tiamat touched his shoulder with her left hand, subtly slipping away her other hand from his grip at the same time, "Please Gazef-dono, you don't have to go that far. I promise you that the villagers will be protected. I swore in my name and the name of Ainz Ooal Gown."

After hearing her swear on her name, the Warrior breathed a sigh of relief. He stood up from his kneeling position. "Thank you very much, Lady Hannah. Now I have nothing to worry about. All I need to do is to charge boldly ahead."

"I understand, and I wish you the best of luck," she smiled gently at him. This man had truly decided to die there.

"And I wish you a safe journey home, Lady Hannah," he then turned around to leave the abandoned church, and before long, Tiamat heard the sound of horses galloping away from the village.

"Sebas?"

"My Lady," he quickly responded.

"Why is there an eight-edged assassin here?" she questioned.

"I brought him over because he wanted to pay his respects to you, My Lady."

"Oh, how refreshed my soul is whenever I see Lady Tiamat!"

'_Cringe.'_

She was not an air purifier, and wasn't refreshing like one either. Furthermore how does one refresh a soul?!

"Oh... I'm grateful for the compliment. Are you part of the support troops?"

"Yes, there are a total of fifteen eight-edged assassins who stand ready to receive your orders!"

Tiamat nodded in acknowledgement. Fifteen was more than enough.

"What are we going to do next, My Lady?" Sebas asked.

The Dragoness let out a toothy grin at Sebas, "I've booked a great seat for a show. All we have to do is to sit back and enjoy the show provided to us by the Stronger Warrior-Captain in the Kingdom."

"I see, but before we go, it seems that I have to teach you a few lessons regarding men, My Lady."

"Eh?"

Turns out Sebas had objected to the way the Warrior-Captain had acted towards her. Sebas then proceeded to lecture her for five straight minutes.

'_Why did you have to make Sebas so similar to you Touch Me-san!'_

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

He could not accept this kind of ending.

Blood dribbled from the side of Gazef's mouth as he rose to his feet.

A man who should have been powerless to stand now stood proudly, the mighty force of his presence forcing back the angels that surrounded him.

Just getting to his feet had him panting heavily. His mind was a blur and his body felt like it had turned to mud. But he could not lie down. If he lied down, all would be lost.

This little bit of pain he felt could not compare to the suffering of the villagers who lost their loved ones.

"I am the Warrior-Captain of the Re-Estize Kingdom! I am a man who loves and defends his country! How can I lose to bastards like you who stain my country with your footsteps—?!"

He was certain that the Red Goddess would once again protect the villagers.

In that case, he should defeat as many enemies as he could, so that others would not meet the same fate as all the villagers already killed.

"...You will die here because all you can do is babble nonsense, Gazef Stronoff."

Gazef glared at the enemy commander as his cruel mockery reached his ears.

"If only you had abandoned these frontier villagers, you would not be dying here. You probably don't know, but your life is far more valuable than even a thousand of these peasants. If you truly love your country, you should have abandoned them to die."

Gazef simply stared straight ahead, his hands trembling as he gripped his sword. He focused on the enemy in front of him, ignoring the angels surrounding him.

"What a pointless effort. Truly, you are an idiot. After we kill you, we will massacre the villagers you saved. All you have done is bought them a fear filled stay of execution."

"Kuh. kuh... kuku..."

Gazef was laughing brightly.

"What's so funny?"

"Fools. In that village… there is someone who is stronger than me. Her power is unfathomable; she could take you all out by herself," he grinned. "Trying to kill the villagers she's protecting... is impossible for you."

"Someone stronger than the Kingdom's greatest warrior? Do you think boasting like that will do you any good? You truly are an idiot."

Gazef was still smiling. What kind of look would Nigun have on his face when he met that woman called Hannah Annafelowz? Seeing that would probably be the best gift Gazef could receive before heading off to the afterlife.

"Angels, kill Gazef Stronoff," Nigun ordered.

Countless wings moved in response to that cold, cruel order.

Gazef steeled himself, preparing to run forward, when suddenly a familiar gentle voice came from above him.

"Which scroll was it again? Ah! Found it.『Forced Teleportation』."

The scenery before Gazef changed, and he was no longer on that bloodsoaked plain. Instead, he was in the corner of what looked like a simple village hut.

There were worried-looking villagers all around him.

"This, this is..."

"This is a warehouse that Lady Hannah is protecting with her Dragons."

"You're the Chief..." then he looked around, still trying to catch his breath. "Lady Hannah does not seem to be here."

"No, after she cast a magic spell to protect the warehouse and left her Dragons here to guard, she said she would handle the enemies outside, Warrior-Captain-sama."

Gazef allowed himself to relax. He would have no part to play in what was coming next. Gazef collapsed to the ground, and the villagers hurriedly drew closer.

The Six Scriptures. They were an enemy that even Gazef Stronoff, the strongest warrior in the region, could not hope to defeat.

Yet, he could not even begin to imagine that the Goddess would lose.

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡

A sudden golden light blinded the battlefield, startling the members of the Six Scripture. Then the light slowly died down, and Nigun's eyes familiarized him with the current view.

Before, the bodies of the Kingdom's Warrior Band were littered across the plains, and Gazef Stronoff was already on his knees waiting for his death. But instead of the bloody battlefield that he just saw, there were two strangers standing in front of him.

A red haired woman, a very rare shade of hair, he noted, who was dressed like one those easter nobles. On her head was a headpiece adorned with gold and rubies, insinuating that she was a person of status.

Behind her stood an old butler, wearing a pristine black outfit. His face was hidden by an evil looking mask. With a single glance he could tell that it was a high-end magic item.

Nigun was wary because it seemed that the two strangers teleported the soldiers as well as Gazef somewhere. But he had no idea who was the one who used magic between the two of them and what kind of magic was used.

Considering his options, he called the angels back, forming a defensive line, while he studied their movements. Before he knew it, the woman had stepped forward.

"I am pleased to meet you, people of the Slane Theocracy, I am Hannah Annafelowz of Ainz Ooal Gown," her gentle voice pierced through the clearing. Even so, Nigun couldn't help but feel a sinister aura behind the beautiful voice.

Nigun didn't respond as he tried to recall the name Annafellowz and Ainz Ooal Gown. There was no noble in the Kingdom, Empire, or even the Theocracy with that last name, and the name Ainz Ooal Gown didn't mean anything to him. It might have been an alias.

"This person behind me is my butler, Sebas. But our identities don't matter. I am here to make a deal with you. Will you give me a moment of your time?" the mysterious maiden who called herself Hannah continued.

Nigun raised his chin, indicating her to continue.

"Wonderful!" she exclaimed happily, clapping her hands together with joy. "Thank you for taking the time to listen to me. Then, I will start by making one thing clear to all you gentlemen."

"Stop dallying and get on with it!" Nigun screamed at her, frustrated that Gazef had escaped by the skin of his teeth, and that this woman was the cause of his failure.

"Of course!" she cleared her throat and with a loud voice she made a very bold statement towards the legendary Sunlight Scripture.

She smiled sweetly at them, just like how a mother would gaze at her beloved child. Her hair and dress flowed with the wind, giving her an ethereal appearance.

But her next sentence brought fear down to his core.

"Since it's impossible for you to defeat me, I have decided to kidnap all of you."


	5. CHAPTER 5: The Slane Theocracy

CHAPTER 5: The Slane Theocracy

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hackslashbash: Reuploaded for consistency and technical fine-tuning.

* * *

The person in front of him let out a derisive scoff, as if she had already won against his Angels.

"Since it's obviously impossible for you to defeat me, I'll kidnap all of you," she declared confidently.

The Sunlight Scripture had about twenty people, each and every one of them capable of summoning their own angel. Aside from that, they were all well versed in magic of the third tier. Magic that only the brightest and the most talented were able to acquire.

'She must be bluffing,' he thought to himself.

A slender, dainty woman, still escorted by her butler was saying that she wanted to kidnap them? He sneered at the sheer ridiculousness of the statement.

How was she going to accomplish something so clearly impossible? Did she have any idea who she was talking to?

The Sunlight Scripture was one of the elite Six Scriptures from the Slane Theocracy. Countless missions had been cleared by his unit, and even more demihuman filth had fallen at their hands. But this was the first time that anyone, aside from that pest Gazef Stronoff and those damnable women adventurers, would go this far to annoy them.

Imbecile.

Overcoming his initial shock at the woman's outrageous statement, he cackled. It started with a soft chuckling that only the members around him could hear him, and slowly escalated into a full-blown guffaw towards the two completely and utterly foolish strangers.

"You?" he snorted, "Y-you said you want to kidnap us?"

He laughed again, even louder than before.

When the members behind him heard the sheer confidence that he exuded, they felt relieved. These two were just more pests full of hot air. Of course, no one would be able to defeat them, the legendary Sunlight Scripture. Their unease erased, they began to laugh together with him.

But there was no reaction from the woman.

Instead, she just continued smiling like what they mentioned didn't matter. Noticing the lack of response from the woman, Nigun stopped laughing and gritted his teeth in annoyance.

"Listen here, bitch. We are the Sunlight Scripture. You want to capture us? You and what army?" he goaded her.

Slowly, her grin widened. "I'm glad you asked! But first, let's get rid of those annoying pests you call Angels."

Pests? Did the bitch just say that their Angels were pests?! The whole group stopped laughing and looked at the woman with sheer contempt. How dare she call the Angels, the beings who deserved their utmost respect, mere pests!

They were seething with anger. This fool will die a slow death begging for forgiveness. Just like every other heretic they've met.

"Not before we kill you first. Angels, attack!"

Swiftly, the angels moved in accordance to Nigun's command and raised their swords high, ready to smite the woman and her butler. The butler moved to protect her, and amidst the din of battle, her lips moved, but they could not make out what she had said.

In the blink of an eye, the Archangel Flames brought their swords down upon the butler. There was no way he could have possibly survived that attack.

Quickly dispatching the butler, the rest of the angels flew towards the woman and swung their swords to lacerate her body.

'Ridiculous,' Nigun thought to himself. In the end, what Gazef had boasted about so proudly earlier had indeed turned out to be a bluff. His grin widened in satisfaction. No one was as strong as the Sunlight Scripture. After he was finished here, he would go down to the village and massacre every single person, along with Gazef Stronoff, take his head, and burn the entire village down to the ground.

For this woman, if she was still alive even after this ordeal, he would take her to the Slaine Theocracy as his play thing.

He had many things that he wanted to do to that body. Moreover, he had always wondered what a noble lady tasted like.

Human peasants were disgusting. They smelled just like pigs and even squealed like pigs. The best fuck he'd ever had were the elf slaves he got as a gift when he had finished a particularly difficult mission given to them by the Theocracy.

He snickered at the thought. It would be so easy. No matter where or which country or family she hailed from, he could just charge her with blasphemy for insulting their most exalted beings, the angels.

But this time, his plans didn't go the way he imagined.

The butler should've been dead. Four swords had pierced his body, but it turns out that he was holding the swords of those angels with his bare hands. Their angels thrashed, trying to escape his iron grip.

The rest of the angels who tried to hit the woman found that no matter how hard they struck her body, they could not even leave a scratch on her clothing.

Impossible...

She looked at him and taunted "My, thank you for making my job easier by sending all your angels here! Now, please do the honor."

"Certainly, My Lady," The butler replied.

His fists vanished in a blur, and the angels in front of him instantly disintegrated into fading motes of light. He then went toward his Lady's side and with a few quick punches here and there, the angels were no more.

There was no way.

There's no way! Nigun's eyes and mouth widened in disbelief. The angels should have been immune to physical attacks! Yet this butler had defeated them with his bare fists. Moreover, he had managed to destroy at least twenty angels in just mere seconds.

Looking at the scene in front of them, the moral of the Sunlight Scripture plummeted. Where there was a once supreme confidence, a sense of dread now crept into their souls when they beheld the two people... no, entities before them. Without realizing, their formation fell into disarray.

Unconsciously, they were trying to run away.

Because there was no way humans should have been able to do that. Even the Strongest Warrior-Captain had struggled against their angels.

"What are you…?" Nigun asked, still in disbelief.

"It seems that you have poor hearing," she said nonchalantly as she stretched her arm; her tone light as if she was having a friendly conversation with them. "I told you earlier, I am Hannah Annafelowz of Ainz Ooal Gown, and this is my butler."

"Don't you fuck with me! 『Searing Light』!" terror slowly crept into Nigun's mind as he hurriedly released a 3rd-tier spell to quickly eradicate them. They had done the impossible. No one had ever managed to defeat their angels, yet these two monsters did just that with minimal effort.

Dangerous.

Slowly but surely, the rest of the members of the Scripture follow suit. They threw every spell in their repertoire, from elemental spells to debuffs to blessed holy magic.

As quickly as they began the chants for their spells, the woman moved in front of the butler to shield him. And just like how the blades of the Archangel Flames had slid off her, their spells also seemed to have no effect as they harmlessly diffused upon making contact with her.

A storm of spells raged around her.

But she didn't even move a muscle. In fact she even yawned. "You guys are really weak, huh? You're not even strong enough to damage me…"

Not only had the butler slaughtered their angels, now their spells were incapable of harming her.

They felt like they've been trapped in a nightmare.

"U-uwaahhhh!" One man in particular threw a pebble from his sling in panic, and even that small pebble bounced right off of her. It was as if she was set apart from the world…

"YGGDRASIL magic huh?" she muttered to herself. "Well, now I'm definitely going to kidnap all of you. I did tell you earlier. You can't defeat me."

"Hiiii!" The members of the Scriptures screamed in fear. Their angels didn't leave so much as a scratch on the two monsters, and even worse, their magic couldn't even reach them. Just what were they supposed to do?!

They looked to Nigun, their leader for help. But he too was also at a loss for what to do.

"In that village there is someone stronger than me."

Impossible…

Impossibleimpossibleimpossibleimpossibleimpossibleimpossible!

"Principality of Observation! Attack them!" he ordered, more frantic than before.

In response to Nigun's orders, the towering angel that had been floating by his side up till now suddenly spread its wings and flapped, propelling itself forward.

The Principality of Observation was an angel in full body armor. It held a mace in one hand and a round shield with a sun motif in the other. A garment that looked like a long skirt covered its legs.

The Principality of Observation was stronger than the Archangel Flames, but it had not been deployed into battle until now because of its special skill. In accordance with its name, the Principality of Observation had the ability to raise the defense of all its allies. However, this ability lost its effect once the angel moved, so the wise decision would be to order the Principality of Observation to hold its ground.

The fact that Nigun had ordered it to attack was a sign that he was grasping at straws. He had to grab at anything which might turn out to be a lifeline, even if it ended up being chaff.

As ordered, the angel drew up in front of her, and raised its shining mace. She casually reached out with her dainty left hand to meet the attack.

While it would not have been surprising for that strike to have shattered her bones to tiny bits, her hand was fine. She casually blocked the subsequent hits as they came.

"『Overloaded Dragon's Breath』."

A great blue vortex of flames erupted from her mouth. The fire was so hot that the Sunlight Scripture was slightly sweating even from a distance. The inferno reached the body of the angel and soon after, the Principality of Observation was consumed by the hellish conflagration.

The angel's body instantly vaporized amidst the blue flames. It was so intense that it was all Nigun could do just to barely peel his eyes open.

As soon as the angel disappeared, the fire vanished along with it.

No trace of it was left behind. It felt like an illusion, as if the Principality of Observation and the Archangel Flames were not even there in the first place.

"H-how could it be..."

"In just one hit!"

The Scripture members stammered again, taking another step back from the two of them.

"Impossible!" Nigun shouted. "It can't be! It's impossible! Nobody can defeat a high tier angel with just one spell! Who are you, no, what are you, Hannah Annafelowz?! It's impossible that nobody's heard of you before! What is your real name?!"

His calm exterior disappeared. He was facing an enemy that he could not hope to defeat. His wild screaming was actually his plea, to glimpse even a sliver of hope in this harsh reality.

She spread her arms, bathed in the light of the sunset as the ruby silk ribbon wrapped around her hips fluttered in the wind. Her red clothing and hair made her appear as if she was bathed in blood.

"Impossible? Not really. In the end, your angels were actually low-leveled monsters. I mean, they couldn't even harm me," the strange woman shrugged before her voice grew deadly quiet, "But my, aren't you inattentive? I told you again and again, and I will repeat myself one more time."

Silence reigned in the air as they awaited the answer. Her voice rang out as clear as a bell.

"My name is Hannah Annafellowz. But you're right in saying that this is an alias. My real name is Tiamat, and I am the Goddess of Dragons."

At that moment, it was like a veil was lifted from their eyes. The woman in front of them had changed subtly but a few details stuck out to them. She had the same appearance, however, the two antler-like horns adorning her head and a tail peeking out at the end of her dress made all the difference in the world.

Nigun was unable to rebut what he was hearing. It was something he did not understand from a woman he understood even less. That was the situation he was in.

His heart thudded painfully loud against his chest. His breathing grew heavy, like he had been running for hours.

Words of reassurance began appearing in his head. However, the sight of the woman who had changed into a Dragon and called herself a Goddess was telling Nigun something else.

'—That is a monster beyond my wildest imaginings. I could never hope to defeat it.'

"Cap-Captain, what, what should we do...?"

"Figure it out yourself! I'm not your mother!"

Losing his cool in front of an unknown monster like this was a very bad thing.

The sun was slowly falling below the horizon, and darkness threatened to swallow the world. But despite the growing darkness, she still shone. It felt like the sun had dropped a ray of sunlight unto her, setting her apart from mere mortals such as themselves.

Nigun tried to force his fear back, and hysterically gave an order. "Protect me! Protect me if you want to live!"

Then he remembered. No, he had another trump card. A wave of relief washed away his terror as he reached for the sealing crystal he kept close to his chest. The sealing crystal that contained the holiest of all angels.

"You won't be able to defeat the highest level angel!" He mocked them, his face filled with triumph as if he had already won. He saw the woman's smile fade when he said that.

"Sebas, keep yourself close to me," she said warily. "If he summons the highest level angel from YGGDRASIL, you won't be able to defeat it alone without getting hurt. We'll have to settle for kidnapping just one member before retreating."

He had heard that. There was no way he was letting this woman retreat now. He will make them experience the greatest pain! Nigun broke the crystal and brilliant light shone forth. "Behold, the glorious visage of the highest angel!"

"It's coming!"

"Finally!"

The members of the Scripture were excited. Truly Nigun, their leader, was a great and powerful one, for he could summon the greatest angel of them all!

Now they could kill the woman in front of them!

This time she would be the one who was afraid

And they would bask in her screams as holy judgement rained down upon her.

"Dominion Authority!"

With a flash of holy silver light, a huge angel arose from the crystal. Its greatness was marked by the six wings on its back and the royal tablets written in the language of the seraphim on its chest. Its divine magic rippled throughout the plains, banishing the darkness of the night.

"Are you serious?" the woman gaped in disbelief. "This is your highest level angel that you were planning to kill me with?"

He saw her frightened form and let out a sigh of relief. "Indeed! Your fear is only natural. After all, this is what an angel of the highest order looks like. While using it here seems like a bit of a waste, I have determined that you are worthy of it!"

"How could this be…?" she covered her mouth with her sleeve to hide her own shock.

"Hannah Annafelowz—no, Tiamat of Ainz Ooal Gown! The truth is, you deserve respect for forcing me to summon this most exalted of angels. Be proud of your fearsome strength, Goddess of Dragons!" he screamed like a madman. "Personally speaking, I would like to bring you into our fold. You are a wonderful creature. At first I thought you were a noble, but now that you have turned out to be a Dragon, my curiosity is piqued even more than before! What would a Dragon taste like in my bed?"

He could see the butler stiffen at his bold statement. Since he wore a mask, it was impossible to see his expression, but to Nigun it looked like a gesture of despair. Relishing in the hopelessness the two must be feeling, he continued. "At the very least, I shall remember you — the Dragon who made me decide to summon this mighty angel!"

He expected them to beg and grovel for forgiveness. As they should have. Instead, a voice filled with disappointment responded to him.

"Ehhhhhhhhh? Is that it?"

"Huh?"

Nigun had no idea what she was saying. To Nigun, she was little more than a sacrifice to the highest order of angels, which humanity could not possibly defeat. Yet, her attitude seemed too relaxed for that.

"I can't believe I was on guard against that," she covered her face with her hands in what appeared to be shame, "This is so embarrassing!"

"No, My Lady," The butler swiftly replied. "You acted in accordance with the situation, as you should have. There is no need to feel embarrassed."

"I-Is that so? It's just that it's so anti-climatic... I don't know what to say."

Nigun's mind could not keep up with their patronizing banter.

"How can you act like that in front of the angel of the highest order!?" Nigun shouted. He could not believe that this woman and her butler were chatting leisurely and completely ignoring the Dominion Authority.

Their calm attitude conveying absolute superiority suddenly cut off the surging joy in Nigun's heart. In its place was terror and unease.

Could it be that this Ainz Ooal Gown organization and Tiamat were more powerful than the Slaine Theocracy?

"No! Impossible! It cannot be! Nobody can be stronger than the highest-ranked of the angels! This is a being that has defeated a Demon God of legend! In the face of a foe that humanity cannot beat — you must be bluffing! It must be a bluff!"

He would not, could not acknowledge this. He could not believe that a person who could defeat the Dominion Authority was not only an enemy of the Slaine Theocracy, but was standing right in front of him.

"Use it! Use 『Holy Smite』!"

This was magic of the seventh tier, a realm humanity could not hope to attain. Even the large-scale rituals of the Slaine Theocracy would struggle to cast it, but this most exalted of angels, Dominion Authority, could do it by itself with ease. That was why it was ranked among the highest order of all angels.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever... I won't move if that's what you want. This should satisfy you, right?"

Her casual attitude filled Nigun with fear.

This angel of the highest order had once defeated a Demon God of legends. Its omnipotence was enough to qualify it as the mightiest being on the continent. It was invincible.

Yet, if someone could defeat it...

No. Such a person could not exist.

In response to its summoner's wish to use its most powerful attack, the Dominion Authority shattered its scepter. The fragments rose up into the air and slowly orbited its body.

『Holy Smite』.

The spell was cast, and a pillar of light broke through the sky, illuminating the night.

With a loud crash, a seemingly endless cascade of holy blue-white radiance flooded down from the heavens, submerging the woman, who simply raised one arm to shield her eyes.

The seventh tier of magic — a height humanity could never hope to attain.

This sacred power would annihilate all evil beings, and even good entities would meet the same fate. The only difference was if they were reduced to sightless atoms, or if there would actually be remains left behind. This was the awesome power of magic that exceeded the realm of humanity.

Then a single phrase banished all confidence in Nigun's heart.

"『World Eater: Maw of the Void』."

The pillar of brilliance was sucked into a giant pitch black maw on her hand.

Hannah Annafelowz, Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons, was not blasted into glowing ash, sprawled on the ground, or pulverized into meat jelly, but she had just shrugged off, no, completely nullified a spell of the seventh tier.

"You happy now?" she asked, a hint of annoyance creeping into her voice.

The butler who just stood by and watched, bowed in acknowledgement. "As expected of My Lady, you are truly fitting of the title of Goddess. I am in awe."

"Thank you Sebas!" she beamed brightly.

Nigun, who was stunned by their easy-going back and forth, finally managed to recover enough of his senses to shout, "I know it… I know your true identities! — Demon Gods! You must be Demon Gods!"

At the same time, Nigun had the faint hope that if they were indeed Demon Gods, then the Dominion Authority might still have a chance to win.

Countless 'mights' and 'what ifs' popped up in Nigun's mind. Without them, he would have already gone mad.

However, she would not permit a second attack.

"If your 'Demon Gods' were this weak… Nope, I don't want to waste any more time on this. It's my turn now boys," she took a step towards them and cracks appeared in the sky, like the breaking of a pot. They vanished in an instant, and the scenery returned to normal.

As confusion washed over Nigun, she answered. "Good grief… you know, you should thank me. It would seem someone was using divination magic to keep an eye on you, but because I was in the spell's effective range, my barrier activated, and the spell broke."

Those words filled Nigun's eyes with realization.

The Slane Theocracy must have been spying on him.

"Now since that's out of the way, where was I…?" she pondered for a bit. "Oh! You were saying that Dominion Authority is the strongest angel out there?"

A wave of ice ran through Nigun's veins as he picked up on the hidden meaning behind those words.

"Should I show you what the highest level angel truly looks like?" she smiled softly at them as hellfire danced in her eyes, betraying her true intentions.

He, who had always been the oppressor, was now going to become one of the oppressed.

He was filled with an abject and unnameable fear. The fear that he, who had taken countless lives in the past, was now going to have his own life taken. His subordinates saw his terrified expression and it frightened them as well.

He was on the verge of tears.

"『Dragon Saintess Summon: Seraph Empyrean』."

The sound of cathedral bells rung in the air as if announcing the descent of a holy deity. Night turned into Day, and even the parts of the plain illuminated by the Principality of Observation were engulfed by what looked like the sun itself.

The dark sky split apart and at its center, a golden colonnade descended towards Tiamat. In its wake, the Seraph descended to the earth from the heavens, and an angelic choir accompanied her.

The Seraph Empyrean, an angel in the form of a giant human. It was a romanticized representation of the biblical Seraphim, but its might was anything but. Her body, the epitome of femininity, was covered with a pure white robe that looked as if it would flutter away at just the slightest touch. Her face was covered with a piece of holy fabric, and her back was adorned with six immaculate wings. On top of her head, sat a halo of pure starlight.

What set it apart from all the other angels was that the Seraph Empyrean had six delicate arms, all in a position that made it appear as if it was in prayer.

"Gentlemen, let me introduce you to the highest tier angel who is the closest to the throne of God. Seraph Empyrean."

The sight was divine.

So divine that not one of the Sunlight Scripture members dared to avoid the angel's veiled gaze.

The Dominion Authority paled in comparison to this angel. Was their angel not the highest and the most exalted? They laughed bitterly at the lie they had believed for so long.

"Seraph Empyrean, destroy the Dominion Authority," Tiamat dismissively waved her hand.

Acknowledging her order with a nod, the Seraph Empyrean started to sing a hauntingly beautiful tune, with words their mortal minds could not comprehend. A small circle enveloped the angel, and the tune spread like wildfire. The circle met Dominion Authority, causing the inferior angel to slowly disintegrate with each passing note.

It was so underwhelming that it made them stare in dumbfounded silence. It might even have been laughable. But they could not force themselves to laugh.

As the radiance of Dominion Authority vanished, the surroundings dimmed slightly, leaving only the blinding beacon that was the Seraph Empyrean.

There was only the sound of the wind blowing across the plains. And then a hoarse cry broke the silence.

"A-are you truly a Goddess?" Nigun asked the impossible being in front of him who had managed to summon an angel stronger than the Dominion Authority. "Someone as powerful as you, why haven't I heard of you before…?"

Nigun shook his head powerlessly. If the existence in front of him was truly a Goddess, then there was nothing he could do but submit.

"Like I said, I'm the Goddess of Dragons. In the past there wasn't a soul who wouldn't tremble upon hearing my name."

Nigun fought back the urge to weep, frantically thinking of a way to survive. But no matter what he thought of, he could not imagine any of his plans besting the Goddess before him. Therefore, his only hope was to throw himself at the mercy of the Goddess.

"Wait, wait a bit! Tiamat-sama, no, Kami! Please wait, we, no, I wish to make a deal with you! I guarantee you will not be disappointed! As long as you spare me, I will give you any amount of money you want!"

He could see his subordinates' shock out of the corner of his eye, but they were no longer relevant to him. The only thing that mattered now was his own life. Everything else was of secondary importance.

Ignoring the countless angry voices of his men, Nigun continued, "It must be difficult to satisfy the tastes of such a great Goddess such as yourself, but I will definitely prepare enough money to please you! I have a position of some power in my country, so they will definitely pay any price to ransom me! Of course, if you desire anything else, I will do my best to meet your wishes. So I beg you! Please spare my life!"

Nigun panted as he finished his monologue.

"What, what about it?!"

The woman's delicate voice responded to Nigun's desperate plea.

"Did you not hear me the first two times?"

"T-that is-!"

"I told you before. I am kidnapping all of you."

She shook her head, clearly tired of repeating herself.

"You have ears, but you refuse to listen. Sebas, do me a favor and rip off his ear for me."

Sebas was also frustrated. He slowly walked towards Nigun's direction and placed his hand on Nigun's ears. For the Supreme Being to repeat herself countless times… This man didn't need his ears if he had no intention to listen.

Moreover, his lewd comments towards the Supreme Being were also unacceptable.

Sebas decided to rip it off slowly, as punishment for arrogantly disregarding the Supreme Being's words.

Nigun's frustrated scream could be heard all the way to Carne Village, but his men stood by and didn't do anything to stop the butler.

"N-no, p-please Sir, I know I did wrong. I won't do it again! W-what are you doing?! H-help meaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

Sebas threw the ear on the ground and flicked away the blood on his hand before returning to his Supreme Lady's side.

None of the Sunlight Scripture members came to his rescue. Who would? He who readily abandoned them in the time of crisis. He deserved it.

She's mad, this woman was mad. Nigun who realized this felt every last drop of hope drain out of his soul.

"As My Lady said, cease your meaningless struggling, and you will be killed without pointlessly drawing out your suffering."

ψ(｀∇´)ψ

Soon afterwards, Tiamat ordered the Eight-Edged Assassins to take each and every one of them back to Nazarick for interrogation. She asked one of them to pass along a message to Demiurge to interrogate Nigun personally about the history of this world, magic, and especially anything about the Slane Theocracy.

Moreover, she also asked them to pass the ear along to Cocytus so it could be frozen. She might have some use for it in the future.

Now she had a new problem.

How did she dismiss her summons…?

At first, she only summoned Seraph Empyrean for show. In the end, it managed to defeat the Dominion Authority with its special attack: the Tune of the Black Flower. And it didn't take long either.

The Tune of the Black Flower was an attack only available to the Seraph Empyrean in which they sang the innocent song of ruin, like a prayer, so that the one who heard them would receive death.

Meaning, the song slowly drained away the enemy's HP. Very useful for Guild Battles.

The special effects it had in the New World were beautiful as well.

But after it finished its tune, it should have vanished. The tune in YGGDRASIL lasted for about eight minutes. And after the eight minutes were up, the angel would self-destruct.

Tiamat recalled the time Ainz Ooal Gown had fought an all angel guild before in YGGDRASIL. There were two players who managed to summon Seraph Empyreans which resulted in a long and grueling battle.

The tune nicked away at HP and the final explosion would usually finish off what little may remain. The Seraph boasted high physical and magical defenses, so it was very difficult to defeat.

The nostalgia of desperately spamming her regeneration and healing skills...

Yet, the Dominion Authority died within the first two lines. Less than 15 seconds.

Now she had a ticking time bomb on her hands.

Tiamat didn't know how much damage its self-destruct could cause to the surrounding area after a full eight minutes had passed… Would it even explode if there were no enemies around?

Should she give it to Aura and Mare as a plaything?.

Coming to a decision, Tiamat ordered one of the Eight-Edged Assassins to pass a message to Aura and Mare regarding the Seraph Empyrean. They were to isolate it and wait until she returned. As the Assassin left to deliver the message, she pulled out a scroll and opened a『Gate』before ordering the Seraph Empyrean to go to the Sixth Floor of Nazarick. The Empyrean silently complied and glided through the swirling rift.

After she hid her horns and tails again with the item『Scale of Ragnarok』, Tiamat and Sebas walked back towards the village underneath the night-veiled plains. When she raised her head, the stars in the sky greeted her with a breath-taking sight.

This was definitely something she could get used to.

She sighed at the beautiful scenery for the second time before heading back to the village.

"Thank you for the mask, My Lady," Sebas took off his mask and handed it over to her.

"That's alright Sebas. You can keep it," Tiamat briefly glanced at the mask before looking back up at the sky.

"Is that so? In that case, I am thankful for your gift. If I may ask, where does the mask come from, My Lady?" Sebas inquired.

"Oh, that? That's just a Christmas gift. Even Momo-chan has one."

"I will protect this gift with my life, My Lady."

"Please don't, Sebas. More importantly, how do you feel after destroying so many Archangel Flames today? If you are hurt or injured in any way, please tell me immediately so I can heal you," she turned her eyes towards him with worry.

It was true that she had gone a little bit overboard today.

She was lucky that the item he had only summoned a Dominion Authority. She would've been helpless had it stored some powerful magic native to this world, or worse, if it had summoned a Seraph Empyrean.

She could protect herself. Her skills and abilities made sure of that.

But Sebas couldn't.

Sebas was a Draconian, but his job class was a Monk. A fist fighter type.

One wrong move and it could've cost him his life.

"There is no need to worry, My Lady, for I am not injured. Even though it's true that the angels were a little difficult to defeat with fists alone, the build Lord Touch Me had blessed me with made sure that I could defeat my enemies even without the use of magic."

"I see. That's a relief," Truly a relief. She had to plan better next time. She needed to pick up some better strategies and possibly combat styles as well.

So much to do.

"I would also like to ask, My Lady, why did you save Gazef Stronoff?"

"Why indeed? Well, mostly I wanted to see how strong he would be. He's titled the Strongest Warrior-Captain, so I was curious. But seeing him fight against those people from Slane Theocracy was kinda disappointing. I could have just let him die at that point. But," Tiamat sighed. "This is a secret between the two of us, okay Sebas?"

"Certainly, my lips are sealed, My Lady" he assured her.

"He had this sort of…aura around him. He knew he was going to be defeated, and he asked for our help. He was getting desperate at that point. But when we refused, he didn't escape or use the villagers as bait," she trailed off, remembering how awesome Gazef was. "He was fighting the angels, fully prepared to die. Isn't that amazing?"

"So that's why you teleported the Warrior and his band to safety. Marvelously done, My Lady. But wouldn't it have been better to have let me take care of things? There was no need for you to trouble yourselves. Moreover, capturing the people from the Theocracy would have hardly been a difficult task."

"You have to remember Sebas, that I came here to test my powers, not to be protected. Though I appreciate the sentiment, having you do everything for me would hinder that goal."

"I see. I apologize for my lack of insight, My Lady," he lowered his head.

"There's no need to feel sorry, Sebas. Tell you what, next time when such an occasion arises, I'll depend on you. How's that?"

Sebas smiled. "There is no honor greater, My Lady."

Once they reached the village, the villagers were brought out by her baby dragons to greet them. Tiamat could practically see the praise and gratitude gushing out from them, but then she saw Gazef amongst the villagers.

"Warrior-Captain, I'm glad you are alive and well."

"What are you saying, Lady Hannah, I'm literally covered with scars and blood. I am currently a dying man," he joked.

Since Gazef had changed his tone somewhat, she decided to nonchalantly inspect him.

Gazef had taken off his armor and carried no weapons with him.

He was bruised all over and half his face was swollen up, like a strange-looking, misshapen ball. Even still, a vigorous strength burned within his eyes.

She smiled at his light joke. "Well, in that case, let me help you. 『Light Heal』." A blanket of warm light enveloped him and his bruises faded away, returning his body and face to normal. But suddenly she turned away, unable to look him in the eyes. It was as if she had seen something bad.

On his left hand, on his ring finger, laid a golden ring.

The man was married.

It was true that she liked Gazef's spirit, but she was not going to go around chasing a married man. To be honest, she was a little bit disappointed.

"Thank you, Lady Hannah, for saving the village as well as saving both me and my men. Speaking of which, where did those fellows go?"

"Oh, I chased them off. I couldn't defeat all of them," she waved her hand dismissively

That was a lie. They had all been shipped to Nazarick, but Gazef didn't need to know that.

Gazef narrowed his eyes a little, but neither she or Sebas spoke, and the air became a bit more tense than before. In the end, Gazef broke the silence.

"Truly amazing, I do not know how I can repay you, Lady Hannah. Please look for me when you come to the royal capital, and I will welcome you with open arms."

"Is that so... then I'll impose on you when the time comes," Tiamat nodded appreciatively.

"By the way Lady Hannah, here," He took off the sigil on his breastplate and gave it to her. "In the Kingdom, I am the King's personal guard, so it might be hard to meet up with me. Show this to my subordinates, and they will take you to me."

Tiamat gave a slight nod, "Wouldn't the King be troubled if you met up with some mysterious figure?"

He chuckled. "Rampossa may be of royalty, but he's the kindest and strongest person, noble or not, that I have ever met."

She smiled and joked, "Even stronger than yourself?"

Gazef rolled his eyes, but the large smile on his face betrayed his good humor.

"Lady Hannah, I don't know what plans you have but are you willing to let us escort you back? We will be staying in the village for a while to recover, and we can leave first thing in the morning."

Sebas spoke up on her behalf. "There is no need, Warrior-Captain. I will escort Lady Hannah back home myself."

"Still, it's already late and as a Lady, traveling now would be..." his eyes lit up in realization, and he cut himself off. "Forgive me for my impudence, Lady Annafelowz. Of course there is no need to worry when you have such a capable butler by your side. Then, please seek me out when you reach the capital. My doors will always be open to you."

She nodded, and decided that she had taken care of everything she needed to do in the village. There had been more things to do here than what she had expected, and as a result, she had spent much more time here than planned.

"Until we meet again then. Farewell Gazef Stronoff, Chief...uhhh, Chief."

'Crap. I didn't ask him for his name.'

She awkwardly turned around, and Sebas followed.

"Let's go home, Sebas," she said in a voice low enough that only Sebas could hear. The baby dragons were following her each and every footstep with childish excitement, and when they decided that they were far enough from the village, she pulled out yet another 『Gate』scroll to return to Nazarick.

Tiamat stepped into the room where Momonga was spectating through the『Mirror of Remote Viewing』.

"I'm back Momo-chan!"

"Hm, good work Anna-san. Come now, there's a lot we need to discuss."

And so, they spent the rest of the day sharing information. The『Mirror of Remote Viewing』could give a surprisingly clear view of an area, but it couldn't pick up on sounds.

As a result, she had to relay all the information to Momonga in detail.

"Let me call Albedo here, and then we can discuss what you have found."

"Sure, that's fine by me," Tiamat shrugged.

"In that case, let's meet in my office then," he got up from his seat, "Please follow me, Anna-san."

Momonga led her to his private office on the Ninth Floor. There were two plushy sofas adjacent to one another and a lone desk at the end of the room.

She immediately seated herself on the sofa, and Momonga sat beside her.

"Should I make some refreshments, My Lady?" Sebas asked.

"Oooh, and sweets too please!"

"Then please wait for a moment. What about you, My Lord?"

"Ah, nothing for me Sebas."

Sebas nodded and left the living room.

Now it was just her and Momonga.

Momonga was abnormally tall, to the point where he was as tall as her standing when he was sitting. His umbral robe looked rather intimidating on him, and as an Overlord, he did look quite foreboding.

But she knew better. Despite his flashy exterior, what was inside was still Suzuki Satoru.

"So," Momonga began, "How was it traveling outside?"

"It was really fun! Passive magic works the same in this world like it did in YGGDRASIL, and even better, the view, Momo-chan! You're just going to love it!" her eyes sparkled as she excitedly described her impression of this New World.

"I know, I watched everything from the mirror. But there's one thing that has been bothering me," his red orbs pulsed as he looked straight at her.

Tiamat stared back. "What is it?"

"Do you like that man? The one who gave you the sigil?"

"A little bit. Why?"

"Hm... nothing," Momonga leaned forward and rested his chin on his bridged hands.

"Oookay, if you say so," she shrugged.

Right after Tiamat said that, they heard the doors open and saw Albedo and Sebas come in carrying a tray of tea and a cart filled with sweets.

"Sweets! Thank you Albedo, Sebas!"

Sebas placed a cup of tea and a plate of cake on the table in front of her.

"Then," Momonga said, "Shall we begin?"

"Of course," Tiamat pulled out the map the Village Chief had given her out of her Inventory while sipping her tea with her free hand. She laid the map down on the table and pointed at the general location of the village.

"I think that we're located somewhere over here," she placed her index finger on the empty spot between Carne Village and the Baharuth Empire.

Then she took out the copper, silver, and gold coins given to her by the Chief of the village. "Carne Village is still within the Kingdom's territory. So at the very least, we know that these coins are used within the Kingdom."

Then she explained the conversion rates to Momonga and Albedo, as well as how the value of the coins from YGGDRASIL compared to the Kingdom's currency.

"Now to the more important parts..."

Several hours were spent discussing the results of her field test on skills and spells from YGGDRASIL, as well as what happened in the village and the political situation between the Kingdom, Empire, and Theocracy.

After Tiamat finished, she suggested. "That's why I brought those gentlemen from the Theocracy here to Nazarick. They appeared to be some sort of elite unit and would definitely have understood the Slane Theocracy and the politics between the countries better than the villagers. They were also able to summon monsters from YGGDRASIL as well as casting 3rd-tier magic."

Hearing this, Momonga gave an order. "Albedo, tell Neuronist to interrogate them. Do not kill their leader. Also, send the equipment of the knights who attacked the village to Pandora's Actor. I want them to be examined for any enchantments and sent to the Treasury after he concludes his investigation.

"As you command, My Lord. I also sent out two Shadow Demons to keep an eye on the village. Forgive this one's impertinence, but what should we do about Gazef Stronoff?" Albedo swiftly replied.

"Leave the Warrior-Captain be for now. It is more important that we build a good relationship with that village. We might need their help in future, so avoid antagonizing them."

"Understood. I will take care of it."

Albedo was scarily efficient. After hearing about her little adventure today, she immediately planned out their next moves far ahead of time and quickly acted upon Momonga's order.

"Then, please excuse me," she stepped out from Momonga's office. Momonga waited for the door to close before turning around to look at Tiamat, "Well done."

"Of course!" she smiled happily in response. If her tail was out, it would have been wagging a bit.

"Sebas, please step outside of the room for a moment. I have something that I want to talk about with Tiamat."

"As you will, My Lord."

Once Sebas stepped out of the room, the temperature in the room suddenly dropped. Tiamat's body began shivering, as she gave the brooding Overlord a troubled look. She was worried that Momonga might be angry. Was it something she did? Perhaps she messed up one of his plans?

"Anna-san."

"Y-Yes?"

"You never answered my question from before," he said flatly.

"Your... question?" What did he say? She struggled to remember, "I don't believe I'm following you, Momo-chan. Which question was it?"

He took a deep breath. "To be honest, this whole thing has been stressing me out. I'm an undead now, which means I don't need to eat, sleep, or drink. My emotions are automatically suppressed, but my desires aren't. That is why I'm going to tell you once again."

"Okay? Sure, go for it."

"Remember back before the shutdown, I told you that I like you."

...Was that it?

Did he need reaffirmation that she was still here by his side? That she wouldn't abandon him? The thought that Momonga might like her romantically never even crossed her mind. Who would want a defective good like her anyways?

If that's what he needed then what kind of friend would she be if she didn't give it to him?

"Erm, I like you too?"

"Why does that sound like a question?"

"No," Tiamat cleared her throat, and looked him dead in the eye sockets, "Of course I like you, Suzuki. You, Tabula, Bukubukuchagama, Peroroncino, Ulbert, Yamaiko, and the Floor Guardians. Did you think I hate you or something?"

At her statement, his skeletal mouth dropped wide open as his eyes stared at her in disbelief. Then a green aura washed over him and he closed his mouth.

"What?"

"No, nothing. I'm glad that me, my friends and the Floor Guardians are so loved," he loudly sighed as he dragged his palm down his face.

"Of course! At this point, all of you are my whole world now. Wouldn't it be the same case for you? By the way, cake?" she offered through a big mouthful of the confectionary. Suzuki had loved the sweets from her bakery; was there a reason why he wasn't eating any right now?

"I suppose, and no. I'm an undead now. I don't have a tongue," he held a hand up in polite refusal.

"Have you tried?" she brought a huge piece of the cake up to his mouth.

"No."

"Then, open wide!" she lifted the fork into his mouth. If he didn't want to eat the cake, she was just going to force feed him.

Besides, could you blame her for being curious? Would the cake dissolve into his skeletal body, or would it plop down on the sofa, uneaten?

Reluctantly, Momonga took a bite of the cake from the fork she'd given him. It was weird to say the least, and as he chewed the cake bits and pieces of the cake fell out from his mouth, but the rest of it was eaten.

Well, dissolved rather.

"How was it?"

"It's... different. I can tell that it's supposed to be sweet but the flavor is somewhat dulled. Truthfully, I've missed eating," he looked down at his skeletal hands.

"This must suck," and she meant it. With the amount and variety of food they had in Nazarick, Suzuki would have been the first to jump on the wagon of trying every dish available.

The food they had back on Earth were essentially just supplements. They gave you the nutrition you needed, but apart from that, they had no flavor and had the consistency of water. Heck, it might as well have been water. If you wanted to chew something the best most could manage was a tasteless granola bar.

Real food was not for commoners. If you wanted to eat real food, you had to at least have connections with high-level government officials or be filthy rich.

Tiamat frowned at the thought.

This was like a second chance at life and to not be able to eat in both lives made her a little bit upset.

"Should I go hunting for a spell that can make you grow a tongue or something? Maybe there's a 『Polymorph』spell or something?"

"No, the sentiment was all I needed. Thank you for understanding," he pulled out a white handkerchief and picked up the crumbs from the sofa.

She nodded, and once Momonga had picked up all of the crumbs, he continued speaking, "By the way, you mentioned E-Rantel, the adventurer town. I am planning on going."

"Using Perfect Warrior right? I was actually thinking of the same thing. It would be nice to gather more information on what the world's like. Since adventurers traveled through the unknown, I figured that they should know more," she rambled.

"You're going with me then," he decided as the handkerchief burst into flames in his hand, burning away the crumbs but leaving the cloth completely fine.

Tiamat looked at the small feat of magic curiously, "I could? I thought you would be more careful and try to avoid drawing attention to us."

"That's too extreme don't you think? In the end, you are still you, and I am still me. We are not the type to watch and wait. It would be better if you could just come with me so we could watch over each other. Plus, we know each other's strengths and weaknesses which will certainly be advantageous in battles."

"Okay then! I can't wait!" she shot up out of her seat in excitement.

"Oh, and one more thing," Ainz stopped her.

"What?"

"I have decided to change my name from Momonga to Ainz Ooal Gown."

ψ(｀∇´)ψ 

Did you like my vision of the Seraph Empyrean? I based it off of the final boss of Drakengard 3 and its song; Black Song White Scale. Watch it, its epic.

A/N: Author is ranting. This part is skip-able

For those of you new readers. Welcome! Thank you for both the flames and encouragement. Much appreciated. I sucks but I write this because I like it and I want to, so I'm happy that you enjoyed reading it as well.

For those of you who recommended me to fix the grammar and sentencing. Thank you very much for pointing that out. I'll make sure to read each and every point you've written thoroughly. I'll notify you when I've made changes as well.

I have to warn you, I'm not a professional fanfic writer, is that a thing? Like most readers expect each and every story to be written professionally, with great plot, character and thingymagics. Yea, I'll try to improve.

Oh and I know that it's impossible to satisfy each and every reader there is, so I'm just gonna write what I like. What matters for me is that I have fun writing this fic, and if you have fun reading, that's great too!

For those of you who are flamers, here's what I have to say.

Thank you for sending me those beautiful reviews, Chapter 3 which is personally my favorite chapter became the chapter I hated almost instantly because of your reviews. But, no matter. Reviews are reviews, if there are ways for me to improve myself, even through tough love, I'll take it.

But don't you DARE accuse me of plagiarism!

This fic has been compared to that particular fic. SO. MANY. TIMES. I've even reached the author of the fic to notify him/her that this fic is different, and it it.

We. Are. Writing. A. Fanfic. Based. On. The. Same. Story.

Of course there's a level that should be maintained between each character so that they don't get OOC. This fic is my view on how I see the characters in this fic. It may be right, it may be wrong, and I guess your fav author approach towards this issue is through the same perspective as I do, coz I don't see the similarities between the fics. Really. Objectively speaking here.

Moreover, does the author of that fic own the concept of OCs falling down into the New World? Does he/she hold a claim that no one can use this specific concept? No. Darkpetal16 is the first Author I read on this fanfic, that has reverse harems or falling into another world. If anyone has claims towards this kind of concept, its her.

You said they are similar how? Did I Ctrl C Ctrl V her writing? There's this one particular review that made me laugh for DAYS, he/she said I stole that fic and REWROTE it. Like dafaq, that's not plagiarism. Isn't plagiarism when you literally copy-pasted and then make minor changes to fit your story?

Most people think the same way as I do, but when I put it into writing they say it's plagiarism because apparently there is another author who thought that Demiurge and Sebas are hot. First, that author is the first to explain why Aura and Mare is cute. Like hellow?

I don't get it. Please make it clear, when where why how does is my fic the same as that story?

Moreover, if you have read it up to this chapter, you can see that it's totally going in a very, very different direction, as it should be. I was actually debating whether the OC would go to Baharuth Empire as an adventurer, because have you seen that Bishounen Jircniv Rule Farlord El Nix? Yea.

Plus, most of you flamers had judged my fic on FREAKING CHAPTER THREE that this fic is going to the same direction as Child of Jormungand. LIKE HOW? Three chapters is too early for you to know when where and how am I gonna take this fic. It's not like you're the three eyed raven who can see into the future.

But thanks anyway?

Thanks for introducing me to that awesome fic. Check out Child of Jormungand ladies and gentlemen, yes this is an ad, but I'm not paid for it. I personally liked the story and had first read it when there were reviews claiming that I plagiarized it. It's an awesome story, the smuts are juicy, I'm sure you'd like it, you guys should check it out and decide for yourselves whether I plagiarized or not.

So once again, this fic is completely different. Whatever you do, and whatever you accuse me of, it won't change the fact that this fic is an original work.

Toodles!


	6. CHAPTER 6: Sugar and Spice

**Hackslashbash: Reuploaded 3/21/2020**

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**CHAPTER 6: Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice**

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'It hurts…'

The first thing she felt was pain. Pain sharp enough to banish the drowsiness that still lingered in her bones.

The second thing she felt was her usual bed cover. It wasn't smooth, but it wasn't rough either. It definitely beat waking up on the cold-hard ground. Her mattress with all its broken springs was harsh to her back, but it was her mattress nonetheless. No one else used it, so how soft or hard it was didn't matter.

She slowly opened her eyes to the inside of her small apartment. The sunlight peeked through the old window curtains and the toxic smog, irritating her sticky eyes. She let out a low groan as her mind went over her daily checklist.

She had always hated the morning sun. There was little of it thanks to the perpetual haze over the arcology, but it was always the annoying reminder of the work she had to do every single morning.

She was usually awake at about a quarter past four in the morning, and would usually have an all-in-one powder breakfast; tasteless stuff, but it was at least food. Better than what most had. She would then take a quick vapor shower and run to an overcrowded metro straight to the bakery to prepare for the day by five AM.

Every. Single. Day.

Baking had always distracted her, occupying her thoughts as well as offering glimpses of an escape from her brutal reality. If anything, she loved her job. She had to love it. A shudder ran through her as she imagined working in one of the god-forsaken factories so many people had to work in.

But there was no way she would be able to go today. As she slowly stretched her arms towards the ceiling, the pain that had woken her up became ever clearer. Her nerves screamed as a hundred metaphorical needles stung her body.

She slowly inspected her arms and noticed that a large portion of her forearms had begun to bruise. She tried to take in a deep breath, but the unknown weight on her chest freaked her out as she let out a hacking cough.

She smelled like shit.

The sickly perfume of men's sweat and what seemed like the dumpster itself clung like a sticky cloud around her body. She wanted to vomit, and her bowel movements mirrored her thoughts, causing her to run straight to the toilet to heave.

Muscle aches, headache, stomach ache. It felt like her very bones were being pulled apart and crushed together simultaneously. She leaned over the toilet gagging over and over and over. She knew this feeling.

She could still clearly remember the events that had happened last night.

She was thrown to the ground with such force that she thought she had broken a rib or two. It was dim, suffocating, in front of so many people, and there were a number of men holding her down.

She shuddered, even though the room was uncomfortably warm.

Even though she was slightly bigger than the average girl, the fact still remained that one woman could not fight off a group of men by herself.

She knew that this was not the first time. Likely not even the last. But still, the fact remained that it was disgusting and that she hated herself—for it hurt her like no one ever could.

This body was disgusting. Her soul was disgusting. This world was disgusting.

Truthfully, it had been getting harder and harder for her to get up in the morning. She would always convince herself that it was laziness, but the truth was far more scarier. Scary to the point that she didn't even want to think of it.

It was the fact that she had nothing to live for.

She had no family, no home to which she belonged to, nothing she truly loved aside from baking and YGGDRASIL. And even that would sometimes end up like last night. On her worst days, she would think of several ways to end her own life.

Sticking her head into that huge blender at the bakery.

Slitting her arteries with a knife.

Jumping off a bridge.

Strangulation.

Starvation.

The possibilities were endless.

But the ways her life could end didn't matter because she wouldn't last much longer anyway. Everything, from the environment to work to the government to even the people themselves had been geared to cause a slow death. Not necessarily her death, but Death nonetheless. How else could the rich and mighty control their 'numbers'?

Might as well enjoy what little time she had left.

If this was a fairytale, a Prince on a white horse would come and save her one day. Carry her away like a bride or princess.

Far, far, far, away.

But there was no way such a sweet dream could exist in this reality.

This was the place of her condemnation. No one would come and save her besides herself. No one bothered, no one could.

Since this was the situation that she, herself, had created, let her explain how it came to be.

The young woman's name was Anna, Hannah Annafelowz. She was an overweight immigrant who stayed in Japan. A young lady of the ripe age of twenty-four.

Her father and mother had died when she was young, buried by one of the many dust storms that plagued the outsides of the Tokyo Arcology. She had no siblings and no people she knew of who she could consider relatives. Her life was pale, cold, and unreal.

Right now though, she was no longer human.

To be precise, Tiamat's thoughts and 'hers' had been fused together.

Tiamat noticed that ever since she had arrived in the New World, her personality had undergone a subtle but distinct shift. She could hear her conscience repeatedly berate her for how stupid she was for not tormenting the men who had tried to hurt her.

'Why?' it had asked. Why did she not make them regret ever being born? Why didn't she bite off their heads and slowly cook their corpses to feed her dragons?

Why waste such precious meat?

Just thinking about it made her blood boil.

Why indeed?

It would've been easy. She could have stuck countless enchanted needles through their dicks, tongues, thighs, and heart. They would have begged for mercy as she shredded their muscles like butter before healing them and repeating the process over and over again.

Speaking of butter, Tiamat had been whisking the butter and sugar mixture in front of her for a while now; small droplets even flying out of the bowl from her intensity. She grabbed a few eggs and separated them before whisking the yolk together with the butter and flour.

'Not good, not good,' just one more rotation and it would've been overmixed.

Her mind started to wander again.

It would've been so easy.

Just like cutting butter with a hot knife. The molten edge would slide through the butter as the fat would sizzle from the heat. Juicy, delicious, sumpt—

"My Lady."

She moved toward the egg whites and slowly added in a small amount of sugar and began to whisk the whites to make a meringue.

The sound of the metal whisk scraping against the glass bowl filled the kitchen as Tiamat continued to obsessively rotate her wrists.

So easy…

She finished making the meringue in record time. Tiamat wiped her forehead and grabbed the bowl filled with cream cheese and egg yolk. She carefully balanced both bowls and began to slowly combine them into one huge bowl.

Since the whisk she had on her was dirtied, she would have to switch it out for a new one.

Without looking, Tiamat grabbed the nearest tool next to her, ready to stab all her emotions into the mix.

"My Lady!"

A firm hand gripped over Tiamat's. She glared at the person, only to find Yuri softly gazing into her eyes. Her eyebrows were furrowed in slight frustration, and her eyes were filled with worry.

She looked so sad. Why?

Tiamat's mind anchored back onto reality. It felt like she was looking at Yamaiko's child if the kindly teacher ever had one. What made her look like she was on the verge of tears? Was she okay?

"Yuri?" she asked softly, wondering what was wrong with her.

The Dullahan's fingers let go of Tiamat's arm and gently pulled her fingers away from the knife she had been holding.

"I apologize for touching you without permission, My Lady," she smiled softly at her, fixing her glasses with her other hand. "But you were holding the wrong utensil."

Tiamat looked down at her hand and realized that she had grabbed a knife instead of a whisk. She winced at the image of her mindlessly stabbing the mix.

Tiamat slightly turned her head to look at the table and stood in shock at the mess she had created.

Countless glass bowls and cake molds filled with cheesecake mix were ready for baking. Spoons, spatulas, and whisks were piled in a massive stack in the sink. Moreover, flour had been scattered all over the table, reminding her of the chaos she had made years ago when she was just learning how to bake.

It was catastrophic to say the least.

"I'm sorry, Yuri. I'll help you clean up my mess," was all Tiamat said as her mind slowly comprehended the extent of the damage she had caused to the kitchen.

Yuri shook her head in disagreement.

"You don't have to apologize, My Lady. It is my job to serve you to the best of my abilities and that includes cleaning as well," she moved the knife away from her and put it inside the sink. "You seemed to have been a bit lost in thoughts since this morning. Forgive me for my impertinence, but is there anything bothering you, My Lady?"

Tiamat's heart skipped a beat, but she swiftly composed herself in front of Yuri and put on her usual gentle smile.

No one would ever know what had happened to her.

Not even Momonga.

It was her burden to bear this disgusting body and soul of hers.

Hers and hers alone.

"It's nothing, Yuri. I just had a bad daydream, that's all."

Tiamat proceeded to insert the whole tray of filled cake molds into the oven and set the timer as she dug out a pair of baking mittens. While the Dragoness kept herself busy, Yuri gazed at her back, her eyes still a bit wary.

"Alright! Fifty to sixty minutes in the oven and we'll have a bunch of cheesecakes ready to eat. I hope the people eating in the cafeteria won't mind only cheesecake for dessert," Tiamat sheepishly smiled.

'Man, I must be really stressed…'

Stress baking had always been an activity she resorted to in troublesome times. But never to this extent.

Cheesecake was—and always would be her favorite dessert dish. But for her to have cooked it in such large quantities alarmed her even more.

Yuri nodded behind her. "They will be thrilled, My Lady."

"I really hope so… It would be a waste if no one wanted to eat them," Tiamat absentmindedly remarked while scratching her chin.

She couldn't help but notice that Yuri's gaze was fixed to the oven. Her face was professionally stoic as always, but the eyes often betrayed the soul's expression.

"Yuri, after I set apart the homunculi maids' share, you can divide and eat the rest with your sisters and the Floor Guardians. Ah, and don't forget to pack me two slices!" Tiamat beamed. She knew the look of craving when she saw it.

"I-Is that alright?" the Dullahan's voice carried a hint of barely repressed excitement.

'So Yuri has a sweet tooth… I approve!'

Yuri Alpha—the eldest and second-in-command of the Pleiades, one of the strongest battle maids with the pre-programmed personality of a mature, composed, and calm older sister—usually didn't display her emotions for the world to see. But now, Tiamat couldn't help but notice that Yuri's eyes had lit up when she heard her offer.

"Yes. Please eat with your sisters and tell me what all of you think."

"Understood!" Yuri bowed.

Later, Tiamat would find out that the cheesecake had been the homunculi's favorite dish by far that day. Even the Pleiades and most of the Floor Guardians had nabbed one whole cake each from the kitchen and stuffed themselves silly. Strangely enough, Aura and Mare weren't among the ones who had taken a cake.

"Fu fun~ I'm going to deliver these two slices to the sixth floor and personally give it to Aura and Mare."

Just thinking about it filled Tiamat with a sense of anticipation.

Everyone had given her great reviews so far. So much praise in such a short time. She had never been the recipient of so many happy faces ever since Suzuki and his friends had come over for the yearly guild meeting.

"But geez, those maids were crazy. If it's that good then I hope I'll get to see Bukubku-chan's twins' lovely smiles," Tiamat inwardly squealed from imagining the cuteness overload.

(゜Д゜*)

After reassuring Yuri that she was allowed to take a short break with her sisters for lunch, the temporary leader of the Pleiades promised to meet up with Tiamat at the Arena.

Yuri was feeling guilty because it was her job to escort Tiamat throughout Nazarick. Although the head maid's expression remained mostly stoic, the Dragoness still felt a bit abashed as she repeatedly told Yuri repeatedly that it was alright, all while staring into dark eyes that conveyed a sense of failure.

'Well, it's understandable I guess… They've been hardwired this way by our guildmates after all.'

Even still, having Yuri follow her around all day would not only be mildly creepy, but also extremely tiresome.

It seemed that she would have to talk to Ainz or Albedo about forcing the maids and workers in Nazarick to take breaks—not just for breakfast, but also for lunch and dinner—as well as introducing a rotation system to Nazarick's workforce. The last thing she wanted was to become like those soulless monsters who ruled their last world.

But that could be done later.

Tiamat hummed as she packed two slices of cheesecakes and a pot of tea with milk and sugar on the side into a sturdy straw basket. She did a once over of the basket and the table and with a satisfied smile, she teleported straight to the Sixth Floor using the『Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown』.

The world rapidly distorted from the kitchen to a familiar dark corridor. Tiamat rapidly blinked from the sudden change in scenery that she was still unaccustomed to before beginning to walk towards the Arena.

As she reached the end of the corridor, she saw Aura circling around the Seraph Empyrean that she had summoned yesterday. An avatar of beauty incarnate with a majestic aura of the highest order celestial was just floating there?

'I forgot that I ordered the angel to sit and wait in the arena. Wait? What? How...is that even possible? The summoning time should have expired at least a dozen times or something.'

From the end of the corridor, Tiamat smiled as she watched Aura fawn over the otherworldly being. The baby dragons—who also hadn't expired yet, to her surprise—were nipping at Aura's heels, following her every move.

When Aura tilted her head, the dragonlings tilted their heads. When Aura ran around the Seraph Empyrean, they hurried behind her as well. When she got excited, they got excited.

'Waaaaa! What an adorable sight~'

But there were only two dragons playing with Aura.

'What about the other one?' Tiamat looked around curiously.

Despite the loud romping of Aura and the dragonlings, Tiamat's keen draconic ears could still hear the faint rustling of paper from the VIP box. Her eyes moved away from Aura and the baby dragons and peered at the box.

As soon as she did so, the last baby dragon's head peeked from over the box to glare at the unwelcome intruder in the Arena. Tiamat could feel the baby dragon's irritation at being awoken flowing into her in waves from the mental connection. A Dragon's sleep was a very, very important activity.

But as soon as he laid his eyes on Tiamat, he instantly popped up in excitement and purred with overwhelming eagerness. So much so that he unfurled his red wings and flew straight down from the box to ram right into her stomach.

Tiamat received his hug with an equal amount of excitement. His wagging tail jerked from side to side, up and down, hitting the floor like a dog's, except with the strength of a young dragon. She coughed as clouds of dust rose around them.

"Hello to you too!" Tiamat cooed—fanning the dust away with her hand—as she greeted the baby dragon in front of her, instinctively rubbing his long neck. Or was it a she?

Tiamat lifted the baby dragon upside down and gave it a good long look. The baby dragon let out a guttural gurgle, surprised and elated at his mother's sudden action.

'Yup. Definitely a boy,' she put him back down on the ground.

Once the rest of the baby dragons were aware that Tiamat was in the Arena, they immediately came swooping towards her, knocking her backwards with the force of their excitement and momentum. Now, a chorus of three happy purrs resounded before her, their tails excitedly wagging sideways with frightening power.

A normal person would've seen their impending demise.

But all Tiamat saw were her little baby dragons.

'Wait, have they grown a little?' She had left them alone for barely a day, and they were already an inch or so taller?

Tiamat couldn't tell precisely since they were still much taller than her standing. But her mental link told her that they were a tiny bit bigger. And stronger.

'Wait? My summons can grow? But how?'

Now that Tiamat thought of it, it made perfect sense. If this was the real world, there was literally no reason for a creature to simply cease existing. Nor start existing either, but who was she to look a gift horse in the mouth?

So if her dragons were living, breathing creatures—and this mental link Tiamat felt with them certainly indicated that they were alive in every sense of the word—did that mean she had control over life itself?

What a contrast to her life on Earth.

'But does this mean Ainz's undead are also permanent? Are they alive too...unalive?' Tiamat lowered her head in deep contemplation as her dragonlings began frolicking around her, 'Wow! If this is true, that means we can make Nazarick super strong! Stockpiling on summons… wait, my God Beast racial 『Call of Níðhöggr』 is also...ohhh...!?'

『Call of Níðhöggr』was a once per build ultimate trump card which Tiamat had never used, due to the stupidly unbalanced payoff. Who in their right mind would just casually use a once per freaking character summon?! No matter how dire the situation was, she always believed that it was not the right moment. It had to be something epic. Something like a final guild battle or goodbye world level threat boss. And since no one had ever used this skill, or at least no one Tiamat was aware of, she wasn't even sure what it did. Was it a summon, a buff, a skill like World Breaker except much stronger? It had some vague hints written in free-verse poetry, but nothing concrete. But it had the name of Níðhöggr in it, and it could only be used once, so it had to be something grand…

Well, it didn't matter. Tiamat wouldn't be using it anytime soon. Or at least until she was absolutely confident it would not go to waste.

Her mind was running through all the possible applications of permanent summons and the gold it could bring her if she managed to find a loophole in the new system.

'It's going to be a bit of a headache handling all those mental connections though… Wait, gold?'

Hannah was never into gold. Sure, she was sometimes jealous of extra rich clients who showed off in her bakery wearing jewelry that cost more than her yearly income, but why gold all of the sudden?

Was it her newfound dragon nature calling to her?

'Must be. Dragons are greedy bastards.'

But if it was lore that was affecting her character, didn't the lore of God Beast say that she was almost above all material desires? Tiamat's almost celestial nature of being a meta-physical manifestation of a God of monsters gave her an extremely close proximity to the first sphere of celestials. Lored to be closer to God than even Seraphs themselves, God Beasts were stated to wield supreme authority over monster-kind. Which was weird because she had just made a ridiculous mess in the kitchen from cooking cheesecake and was cuddling with her dragons on the floor in a pile of flour and dust.

Not very Goddess-like behavior if someone asked her.

Tiamat shuddered.

'How did I even think of all that so quickly? That took like, a few seconds, tops,' This mind of hers was definitely not normal. Not human at the very least.

The growling of her dragonlings snapped her out of her thoughts. They butted their heads against her body as if to ask her to play with them. All of a sudden, a long smutchy lick with the sticky smell of raw meat slathered her face.

'Wow, this is getting scary. Spacing out in my own thoughts. Definitely sounds like something a dragon would do,' Tiamat thought as she gazed into a pair of adorable eyes.

"Aww," she patted their heads and embraced all three of them. "I'm sorry, have you been waiting long?"

"Lady Tiamat!" Aura looked at her, clearly surprised by her unannounced visit. Even though Aura was surprised, the young elf smile widened even wider, as she beamed up and shone like a child on christmas eve. "Welcome to our floor My Lady!"

"Hello, Aura," Tiamat replied to Aura as she fell on her back with a soft thud from the baby dragons' excitement, "My, my, did you miss me?"

"Hey!" Aura called the baby dragons, and they stopped rubbing their head against Tiamat to look at Aura. "That's no way to treat the Supreme Beings! Come here!" Aura ordered.

The baby dragons looked at Aura, questioning why they had to follow her orders. One of them growled back at Aura, his chest puffed up in pride as if to say 'We are dragons, we bow to no one!' Of course, they were just dragonlings, at the young level of twenty-five, hatchlings one might say. Their dragon senses were sharp enough to know that Aura could easily stomp them if she wanted, but draconic pride won out over common sense.

Tiamat smiled as she watched one of the dragons puff his chest out—trying to act all-mighty and mature in front of his mother—but once he heard Tiamat giggle, every semblance of independence vanished and he returned to wagging his tail and trying to lick her.

Aura puffed her cheeks, frustrated that the baby dragons refused to listen to her orders. Her ears were slightly red, and her large eyes had become watery in frustration. This was supposed to be her moment to show her usefulness to Supreme Being. She was a beast tamer after all.

A whimper was the only thing that escaped Aura's mouth. She had practiced so long with them. For almost an entire day she had taught the dragons proper etiquette and behavior when in the presence of the Supreme Beings.

She was on the verge of tears as she thought of her failure. Surely the wise Lady Tiamat sent them to her floor of all places so Aura, Nazarick's greatest beast tamer, could teach and train them. There was no other reason to send them explicitly to her.

The infamous Jötunheimr draconicus. Rumored to be one of the closest descendents to Níðhöggr himself.

Aura was always thrilled when she got to meet new pets. And Jötunheimr dragons were among the mightiest and largest dragons of all!

True Ancients of their species were essential in the sacred activity of 'grinding', whatever that meant, in creating Lord Ainz's Guild Weapon. Primordial Jötunheimr draconicus were even called 'Event Bosses': beings so strong that they took the combined might of Ainz Ooal Gown to slay even one.

'And now Lady Tiamat, the last Lady of Nazarick, has entrusted me with them. Because she knew I wouldn't let her down...but they still won't listen…' Aura thought to herself.

Aura was helplessly looking as dragons who frolicked with complete disregard for their training. Now, they were even licking Lady Tiamat and dirtying her dress with their dirty paws, 'I have failed Lady Tiamat,' tears slowly descended down her brown cheeks as heteromorphic eyes of Blue and Green became ever so pinkish.

"A-Aura?" Tiamat looked at Aura in worry at the sight of the young elf crying. It seemed that even if her appearance had changed into Tiamat, she was still weak towards children, especially if they were crying.

Somehow, Tiamat could understand Aura's frustration. Aura had a number of job levels in Beast Taming. But none of the baby dragons were listening to her orders. 'Being so specialized in something and not being able to handle a few children... She must be feeling terrible. Wait, does she actually think she's failed me in some way?'

"Okay! That's enough, children!" Tiamat stood up and patted all the dust off her clothes. The Dragoness walked to the one baby dragon who had openly defied Aura, and flicked his forehead with her finger. "Don't be mean. Aura is family and family should protect each other. You should listen to Aura," she firmly reprimanded her dragon.

It softly squawked in defiance before reluctantly backing down. He lowered his head towards Aura in a pose of submission.

'Awh, why do you have to be so adorable?!'

"It's okay, you all should get along with each other from now on, okay?"

The baby dragon gently nudged Tiamat's back as if to say sorry. Just like a child hiding behind his mother's back after being reprimanded.

She kneeled in front of him and patted him, "It's alright. Just don't do it again."

Aura ran and stopped in front of her, "I'm so sorry, Lady Tiamat! I should've done my job better. I-I've failed you!" the elf kneeled as she apologized with the shaky sad voice of someone who had made a dire mistake, "I will accept any punishment!"

"I understand but before that, where is your brother, Mare?"

Suddenly realizing that her brother was missing, Aura lifted her eyes towards the VIP box and yelled, "Mare! What are you doing up there?! Come down and welcome Lady Tiamat!"

Soft blond hair slowly peeked out from the box, and one green eye looked out. Tiamat waved as green met her amethyst. The eye widened before it ducked down and out of sight.

Aura lowered her head, "Please don't get too mad, Lady Tiamat. He's just shy," she turned towards the box with a fierce scowl on her face, "Oi! Get down from there now!"

A nearly inaudible reply came from the VIP box, "I-I can't, Onee-chan…"

Aura took a deep breath and face palmed. She sighed, clearly frustrated by her brother's shyness and angrily shouted again at the VIP box, "Lady Tiamat's come to visit us, but you're not even here to greet her?! You better come down before I make you!" she cracked her knuckles intimidatingly.

"… I-I'll take the stairs down…"

"How long do you want to make Lady Tiamat wait?! Get over h—"

Tiamat raised her hand to stop Aura, "It's alright Aura."

"No! My Lady, he's just scared! He's not trying to disrespect you or anything!" Aura, despite her earlier anger, tried to defend Mare.

Tiamat gently ruffled her hair, "It's fine, Aura. I know."

"B-but…"

The Dragoness completely understood. Growing up, she had always been a shy kid herself. Hannah had no desire to meet strangers either out of fear or spite.

Just like her was when she was a kid, Mare was an introvert.

Introverted children were often misunderstood and viewed as standoffish, rude, anxious, and often mislabeled as shy. Shyness and introversion weren't the same thing. Just because a person was introverted didn't mean that they were shy.

There were several ways to forge quiet friendships with introverted children.

Step one, Introduce the child to new situations in a slow way.

"Come here, Aura," Tiamat beckoned Aura to come closer.

The short Dark Elf looked at her curiously but moved closer anyways. As soon as she was close enough, Tiamat placed her arms around her bottom and picked her up. Aura's small head rested on her shoulder as her legs dangled beside her hips.

"W-wait, My Lady!" Aura stammered with a red face.

Ignoring Aura's protest, Tiamat jumped up towards the VIP box and landed behind Mare's back. Mare was still gazing warily at the Arena, but once he realized that she and Aura were missing, he looked all around him in confusion.

All he saw were three baby dragons playing amongst themselves.

Tiamat tiptoed her way towards him. "Boo!"

"A-Aaaaaaah!" Mare jumped up and turned around to see the Dragoness carrying Aura. "M-My Lady!"

"Hello Mare," Tiamat bent down so Aura could hop off. The child in front of her looked almost identical to Aura with the same face, the same eyes, hair color, and more. Only their hairstyles and outfits were a bit different, but somehow, they radiated a completely different aura from each other, just like the sun and the moon.

Mare looked down nervously as though he was afraid of being scolded. "Sorry for scaring you Mare," Tiamat gently lifted his chin up, "Since it took you so long to come down, I decided to go up instead."

"I-I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, My Lady…"

The two dark elves were standing right in front of her.

'Too adorable!'

It was as if her heart was a fast moving train.

'Be still—my beating heart.'

"No, it's okay, Mare," Tiamat assured him, "By the way, you asked me to punish you since you weren't able to get my dragons to behave, isn't that right Aura?"

Aura chin quivered as she was reminded of what had happened earlier and knelt down again. Mare also knelt, following his big sister's example.

"I am truly sorry, My Lady."

"Then, both of you, please sit down," she ordered them.

They immediately followed her orders.

Tiamat sat in front of them and laid down a blanket with pink floral designs before pulling out the straw basket she had brought with her. She carefully laid down two plates—one for Aura and the other for Mare—and put down the two slices of cheese cake on the plates. Tiamat then leisurely pulled out the pot of tea and milk that she had packed with the cheesecake.

They accepted the plate, but eyed the cheesecake warily. Tiamat pretended not to notice and just prepared two cups of tea filled with milk and sugar.

After some time had passed, the twins still didn't move. "What are you guys doing? Eat," she told them.

"Yes!" was their immediate reply, but the twins were still looking at Tiamat, "But what about you, My Lady?" Aura asked.

"I'm alright Aura, please," Tiamat waved her hand towards the plates, encouraging the twins to eat the cake in front of them. They briefly glanced at each other before taking a careful bite into the cake.

Tiamat smiled as she looked at their captivated expressions. It was as if reality had vanished and the only thing left in the world were the two measly pieces of cheesecake in front of them. The sight was hilarious if anything. 'Kids,' she sighed with a small smile.

The twins ate mouthful by mouthful, a complete 180 from their earlier wariness. Tiamat looked happily at the twins who were happily enjoying her creation.

"Slow down, so you won't choke. Here," she handed each of them a cup of warm milk tea, "Careful, it's a bit hot."

They took the cup of tea and slowly sipped from it. Soon afterwards, they finished with a loud "Ahhhhh…".

"So, what do you think?"

"It's wonderful, My Lady! The cake is super soft, and it was really sweet, and the crust was super crispy. Oh, oh! And, and, the milk tea was suuuuuper tasty too!" Aura rambled with childish delight, "It's truly worthy of being called Lady Tiamat's cheesecake!"

Tiamat held back a giggle at Aura's excitement, 'Aaaaaa! Aura is so adorable when she gets hyper... Wait, how did she know that I was the one who cooked it? There's no way information got here so fast, it was barely half an hour ago! … Yuri.'

While his sister babbled on about the wonders of the cake and tea, Mare was rubbing his cheeks as he chewed on the sumption morsel. A dreamy expression of childish bliss was glued to his face. Tiamat noticed that he had visibly relaxed and wasn't nervous anymore.

"Are you guys pleased with it?"

"Yes, My Lady! It's really yummy!" Aura gave her a big thumbs up as a stamp of approval, while Mare vigorously nodded in agreement with his big sister.

Mare gulped down his last bite before he shyly asked Tiamat a question. "A-Are you the one who made this, Lady Tiamat?"

"Yes."

A surprised expression made its way to Mare's face as his teacup began to tilt over from his astonishment. A few drops of the tea spilled onto the blanket while the rest of the cake became lopsided. Tiamat scrambled to straighten the teacup in Mare's hands, 'Well, it doesn't matter as long as they enjoy it.'

In a moment of short lived bravery, Tiamat told them, "If you like it, I could cook some for you two everyday."

"E-eh?!" the shout of the dark elves twins resounded throughout the Sixth Floor.

"But I'm supposed to be punished, My Lady. Instead, this is…" Aura said as she scratched her head, while Mare looked at his sister with slight concern.

"This is the first cake that I've baked... in this world, at least. In a way, this is a punishment, isn't it? I'm feeding you something that I didn't know if you would like or hate. So, I'm gonna punish you tomorrow, then the day after that, and the day after that as well. Until you grow bored of me," Tiamat lightly laughed, trying to dissolve Aura's concern.

She continued, "Don't worry about messing up Aura. Your job class wouldn't have been able to affect any of the beasts that I've personally summoned anyways. As you know, they are my summons. And if you could recall, my racial class is 'God Beast'. This means as the one God who rules over all the beasts, they will only answer to me. So you aren't at fault here, Aura. Being punished for something you didn't, or rather couldn't do is unfair, isn't?"

She took a deep breath, as the twins continued listening with wide eyes.

"I'd be more concerned if you actually could control them," Tiamat joked slightly, while deep inside actually getting a bit scared at that thought. 'I'll have to investigate that a bit.'

Aura's jaw slightly opened, and soon Mare's followed, finally understanding the implications of their so-called 'punishment'. But soon, their shock faded, and in its place were a pair of smiles; smiles so bright that Tiamat couldn't help but to turn away.

The smile of children.

Happy children who had love and joy in their life. Who wouldn't have to hunt cockroaches for breakfast, fight for gas filters, and throw away their friends when they didn't survive another winter in the poor excuses for 'orphanages'. Her entire life, Tiamat had wanted to erase her childhood, the memories…

"We understand! And we will gladly accept this punishment, My Lady!" Aura's shout shook her out of her thoughts.

"M-Me too!" Mare suddenly said out loud, not wanting to be left out of the dubious punishment. "If that's the case, t-then I want to be punished too…"

Tiamat looked at Aura who grinned right back at her, and both of them fell to the floor and laughed out loud at what Mare had just said, or at least the implication behind it.

"W-What?"

At his innocence, they laughed even harder.

Sugar and spice really did make everything nice.

But Aura's exclamation from earlier had awakened her to just how deep seated her trauma was. If this continued, it could really become problematic. Moreover, this draconic nature of hers wasn't helping. Tiamat needed a distraction. Something fun and joyful.

'What did I like to do?'

Cooking, already tried. Sleeping, well, she was a dragon so she had all the time in the world to catch up on that.

What else, what else? Right, Yggdrasil. But now the entire world was Yggdrasil. What exactly did she like?

Beep Beep

'Is that a message? Who could be calling me?'

[Umm, hello. Tiamat listening.]

[Tiamat. Are you busy?]

[No, why?] she scratched her head curiously.

[How do you feel about reenacting the good old days and venture out to the unknown?]


	7. CHAPTER 7: E-Rantel

Chapter 7: E-Rantel

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**A/N: Thank you to my Betas who works so hard to edit this chapter, I'm so thankful to have you people.**

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Two figures are sitting across from each other, the silence between them heavy with tension. One particular Dragoness was letting out a slight growl as she slouched against her sofa. She crossed her arms over her chest and let out a fierce glare in obvious defiance towards the seemingly apathetic undead in front of her . But the person, no, the Overlord in front of her did absolutely nothing but give her a deadpan stare straight into her furious draconic eyes.

Obviously, neither were willing to concede to the other.

As seconds stretched into minutes, Albedo began to fidget in the strained silence as she could only stand and watch until the last two Supreme Beings reached a consensus.

Finally, the Dragoness slams her hand against the table in frustration. "I told you before and I'll tell you as many times as I need to, until you get it into that thick, shiny skull of yours. Your idea of a 'bet' is unfair. Moreover, with those conditions, you already know that this is a battle that I can't win!"

Somehow she knows that the Overlord in front of her raised his invisible eyebrow as he slightly shook his hand in disagreement. "The point is not to win, but how it can be won."

"That doesn't even make any sense." She sighs again for what feels like the twelfth time already. "And how am I going to even have a chance with those conditions, which are clearly skewed in your favor?"

"That's for you to figure out." he shrugs.

The dragoness fumes again in exasperation, "Then at least make the conditions equally favorable for the both of us!"

"If I recall correctly, you were the one who insisted on waging a bet. I even recall you saying 'Any condition's fine Momo-chan! Stop being such a killjoy.' Hence I see no reason to yield my position. When it comes down to bets, I-"

"Never lose. Yeah, I heard you the first million times, killjoy. That's why no-one in the guild makes any bets with you anymore. You just twist them around and prepare sooooo much until you can't even lose. It's no fun, you know." Tiamat snarks back.

Another long pause stretches between them.

"Fine," Ainz relents. He has had enough of their banter, as entertaining as it was. "Then how about you disguise yourself as a Priestess; furthermore, you shall not use any of your draconic racial levels, because at this point we both know that your racial levels in such a low leveled environment are broken beyond common sense. However, you can still use your dragon summons. No more than one. I will be going in my Perfect Warrior disguise with Nabe."

"What? You're bringing Nabe-chan? How's that fair for me?!"

"The fact that you can summon a dragon isn't good enough? Mrs. 'I'll be as discreet as possible hence I'll summon a dragon'."

She looks at the two red pinpricks of light again, completely disagreeing with his statement. But sooner than he would've expected she replied. "Killjoy. Momo-chan, seriously? Just imagine having a massive dragon swoop down at the entrance of the city. Even though it would be awesome, I would have to be stupid to that!"

Truthfully, the whole situation had a high chance of being very disadvantageous to her.

First of all, she had very little knowledge of the adventurers' guild's system or even the world at large at this point, unlike Ainz who somehow already gathered a fair amount of intelligence. Was it from the Scripture captives? She might go visit Neuronist after all this brewed over. At the moment, all she had to go on was the knowledge she received from the Chief of Carne Village.

'Damn. He thought about this all the way through. Did he expect me to wage a bet? No wonder he accepted my proposal to a rank race as separate adventurers so quickly.'

Having her go to E-Rantel as a new adventurer would definitely spark a lot of problems and unwanted rumors. Rumors which she definitely would want to avoid after her mistake at Carne Village.

One lone adventurer accompanied by a dragon who did her bidding would definitely make her an instant target for a number of undesirable groups.

That was the least ideal situation to be in if she wanted to race through the ranks. Just thinking about the problems it would cause down the line gave her a headache. On the other hand, gaining instant fame as 'The Adventurer Who Commanded A Dragon' could bring in all sorts of opportunities for her.

Yes, she could very well be inviting an entire host of problems upon herself. But beating the guildmaster at his own game was far more important in her mind. For all she cared, she could disguise herself and become top adventurer first before simply vanishing and reappearing sometime later under a new disguise. There were dragon focused items which could change someone's looks until the user received damage. And from the looks of it, she doubted she would get hurt by anything short of the end of the world.

Secondly, her build mostly consisted of racial levels supplemented by a measly three job classes. The conditions of the bet prevented her from using any of her racial skills, with the exception being allowed one dragon summon to carry out her will.

Moreover, she was going to have to keep up appearances since she was going in as a Priestess. This meant that she could only support her dragons through buffs or passive skills. She only had a handful of healing spells she could only use a few times a day, and lacked any sort of offensive holy attacks. Her once per day Seraph Empyrean or Emperor Dragon were about her only summons, but both were impractical in how they could only be used, you know, once a day. And in Yggdrasil, where Heteromorphs and especially dragons were target PK'd around the clock, one battle per day was far too much to hope for.

Her ten level 25 dragonlings summon was as good as non-existent, not even a nuisance for level 100 players. So all she had going for her was insane durability, and the ability to reflect most damage.

On its own, it sounded overpowered but some level 75 prick with high agility would be practically invincible for her. Reflected damage was hard to aim and even someone with average agility who was paying attention could easily dodge it. So running in circles, or better, just having another person harass her from a distance could easily counter her seemingly impenetrable build.

In 1v1 PVP, if she had her high DPS summons and the enemy was unaware of her abilities, it would make her insanely dangerous. Hence the only reason Touch-Me lost so much HP before time expired. If the battle were to be repeated or continued any longer, Tiamat would have been slaughtered. No questions asked.

Touch Me was a good balance of tank and DPS dealer himself; his speed was good, and his damage output on point. But the fact that the summoned Seraph had an AOE spell, and that Tiamat was shielding the angel like a madman allowed to force the match into a battle of attrition. Her regeneration was a bit higher than Touch Me's, ultimately leading to her victory.

Another major factor was that the arena was tiny. Literally no-where on it could any player use the terrain to their advantage. So victory was...arguable, at best.

The World Championship in which Touch Me won was a multi-bracket event. He fought in a total of 13 battles that day. Tiamat would most likely win the 1st one, with ease. Her over the top once per day DPS summon guaranteed a balanced team of damage dealing and tanking with herself as the meatshield. But once the summondied or expires...well...she would be a living sandbag for the rest of the day.

She would be helpless to the point that even someone like Mare would have been able to kill her in the 2nd round.

She had 10 levels in Ascended Guardian which gave her about a dozen skills in the 'Warrior' category, which meant that if she was fully prepared and had a summon in the Arena , she could technically be considered amongst the top 10 strongest warriors.

For that single 15 minute long 1v1, she could even pull a surprise victory over Touch-Me. A loophole she exploited to earn World Champion before she got PK'd. A totally unfair and undeserved title, but hey, who was she to look a gift horse in the mouth. It's not like Yggdrasil was famous for 'balance' and 'fairness' anyways.

Tiamat shook the thoughts of PvP out of her head and turned her focus back to the Priestess disguise. The summoned dragon was a once per day gamble praying that her only enemy for the day only had mid-low agility, but since her dragons were now permanent, she didn't have to worry too much about lacking firepower throughout the day.

"Fine," she leans back on the sofa, much more relaxed that Ainz thought she would be. "I accept those terms. It's all just for fun anyways."

"Is it now?" Ainz agrees with her, the whole thing was just a way for them to spice things up a bit.

Moreover, with relatively little information at hand, it would be better for them to spread out rather than teaming up to collect the same information. True, there were risks in splitting up. There was a decent chance of other players existing in this world as well. Tiamat with her build and assist from her now permanent high level summon was a force to be reckoned with. Her defense was so off the charts it practically guaranteed an escape through [Gate] or [Greater Teleportation] to Nazarick. While disguised in [Perfect Warrior], Ainz's defense and resistances were second only to Tiamat and Gargantua, so he couldn't be one-shotted by anything short of a world item. A squad of guard Hanzos attached to both teams made it a bit of an overkill, but you could never be too cautious.

"Alright, so when do we begin?" She asks.

"I already made preparations, so I will go to E-Rantel in three days. That is when the official race begins."

"I see." Tiamat immediately stands up from the sofa and glances at her Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown to teleport back to her room. "Then I will begin making my preparations as well." she said as she vanished in a blue light.

"Good luck," Ainz stated. "To the both of us." The red flames on his nonexistent eyes are gleaming in satisfaction, and obvious excitement.

The view in front of her changes into the familiarity of her bedroom, and she notices Yuri standing there, waiting for her instructions.

"My Lady." Yuri bows.

After giving Yuri a quick nod, she sits down on the sofa and began plotting.

Ainz had been one competitive guy, a fact she should've taken into account when she decided to make a bet, and almost certainly would've ensured that the conditions wouldn't work in her favor.

She taps her nails on the table.

'What to do…'

She suddenly remembered Punitto Moe's strategy book: PKing for Dummies. One line in particular had always stuck with her.

"The battle is over before it begins." She mutters out loud.

An idea struck her like lightning. Tiamat's eyes lit up as she swiftly looked around the room.

"Yuri," she calls out to the Head Pleiades behind her. "Have you finished your work for today?" She asks.

"Yes My Lady. Is there anything you need?" Yuri quickly replies.

At this her grin widens, "Then do you mind taking a midnight stroll with me?"

Within a few minutes, Yuri finished her preparations. To be honest, Tiamat was just planning to go out on a walk to Azerlisia Mountains, the very mountain range that acts as a natural border between the Kingdom and the Empire. She saw bits of them from when she went sightseeing on her first night.

There's not enough information for her to know what kind of monsters are lurking around the mountains, and Yuri was sensible enough to prepare several magic scrolls for the impromptu walk. A dozen Hanzos were silently following them as guards. But those guys spoke so little they were as good as non-existent. Also, walking alone all night would have been hellishly boring.

Interestingly enough, one of the scrolls she prepared had been [Mass High Invisibility]. Just like its name implied, it could temporarily render the caster undetectable to conventional vision. It was a mere 5th tier spell, but it should do for this mission. The only reason she chose to use it was because if anything could see through it, they might be potentially worthy fodder, hence, useful for her plan.

"The preparations are all complete, My Lady." Yuri announces.

"Hn, good job Yuri. Then, shall we go?"

Yuri nods in affirmation, and Tiamat opens a [Gate] to travel to the first floor of Nazarick. She wants to take a more scenic route, as well as scout as far away as possible from the mountains, just in case.

The night around Nazarick was unnerving, but beautiful. It was quiet, unchanging, eerie, but beautiful nonetheless. The stars were twinkling against the dark sky, seemingly lighting up the way to the heavens. No matter how many times she had seen this since she arrived in the New World, she was still always mesmerized by its presence.

There was no sight like this back on Earth. The dust and the skyscrapers covered the sky, and the only thing that would even come close to this view would be through her VR. But for all of the polygons the game devs may have put into generating scenery, nothing could beat the real thing.

Tiamat and Yuri sent Hanzos all over the mountain range disguised with [High Invisibility] in advance. And even though no-one had spotted them, one of them reported something interesting.

'Perfect! I can definitely use those.'she thinks with a grin, seeing towering, blue humanoid figures. She couldn't believe her luck! Ainz wouldn't even know what hit him.

There was a lot of grey area in their bet. Since they were by default being dishonest about their nature by going under human disguises, she might as well exploit the loopholes in the bet as much as she could.

She couldn't wait to see his reaction to what she had planned for him, no, herself. But seeing as she only had three days, she had to hurry, since the mountain range was a bit far from E-Rantel, and she hasn't had a chance to set a teleportation checkpoint at E-Rantel.

She had a ton of work ahead of her, but as she thought of the massive payoffs, she couldn't help but break out into a huge grin.

"Let's go back Yuri. We have a lot of things to do."

"Yes, My Lady."

She leaves gleefully.

＼(´◓Д◔`)／

The adventurer's guild was bustling as usual. People stood in line looking to register their quests, while adventurers lounged around in the lobby, waiting for their next job opportunity.

It was yet another hot and humid day inside the guild hall. A bit stinky even, as most of them worked in dire conditions and preferred to hang out in the lobby after hard sweaty missions.

But one particular thing was different this time.

A lone woman opened the door to the guild hall and immediately captured everyone's attention.

Although blond hair and blue eyes were a common staple in the Kingdom and the Empire, symbolizing nobles and royalty, silver hair was practically unheard of.

Moreover, the stark presence of amethyst mixed into her eyes was something that none of them had ever seen before.

Even stranger, she was clothed in a white dress, a color primarily used in weddings although her attire bore no resemblance to the dresses that nobles typically wore during such ceremonies. Still, it didn't change the fact that no woman in the Kingdom nor the Empire, regardless of their station in life, would ever want to wear a white colored dress for day to day use.

First and foremost, it was universally agreed upon that it was too much of a hassle to clean, and secondly, whites were generally reserved for ceremonial purposes.

Next, their eyes landed on her fingers. The sheer amount of otherworldly white metallic jewelry that the woman was wearing could only signify that she was among the wealthiest of nobles, perhaps rivaling King Rampossa himself.

One look at the woman and they could see that she was undoubtedly going to be an extremely high paying client.

The adventurers could only wait in eager anticipation.

However, some of them began to question their own analysis as their gaze landed upon the immaculate white staff with a floating sapphire orb on the top of it. The staff was an intricate piece of art, seemingly made out of a seamless immaculate alabaster wood, crackling and radiating with power beyond even that of the legendary Fluder Paradyne.

What kind of quest would this new beauty bring them? Maybe she desired to know the secrets behind that uniquely designed staff? Or perhaps something simpler like an escorting mission?

Confidently, she strolls over to the receptionist's desk.

"Excuse me," the woman says gently towards the receptionist, and the people's excitement skyrocketed as they leaned forward restless anticipation. Everyone went silent except for one particularly slow adventurer who continued boasting about his latest quest before someone stomped on his foot. Curiosity was a bitch.

"Yes, my lady. How may we assist you in this humble guild today." one particularly brave receptionist who was used to dealing with the nobility immediately replied to the silver haired woman. She curtsied properly, with skill befitting even a high noble's standards. "Would you perhaps want to place a request?"

The woman takes a deep breath, and none of them could believe their ears. "I would like to register as an Adventurer."

The murmuring and clattering of the Adventurers inside the guild filled the air at her bold statement.

However, the silver haired woman is unaffected and she just continues staring at the receptionist.

"Err..." the receptionist tries to formulate a reply; years of experience working in the Adventurers' Guild had not prepared her for a noble wanting to play hero.

The silver haired woman looks...fragile. All noble women did. On second thought, there was Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra, a noble woman who chose to become an adventurer and ascended to the exalted Adamantite rank with her team Blue Rose.

But this lady was different. Her hands were smooth and without blemish, the sign of someone who doesn't know the word 'hardship'.

Her ivory skin indicates that she spends little time out in the sun.

Everyone could only assume one thing.

A noble's daughter trying to play hero, again. Probably inspired by Lakyus and believed she could be just like her. Admirable, but naive.

Which made a lot of sense when one sat down and thought about it.

Her gear was one of the most obvious things to point out.

A dress wouldn't be able to protect her from the heat or cold, and most importantly it wouldn't be able to defend her from anything aimed at killing her.

That numerous priceless rings she wore would only serve to draw the attention of bandits.

Her shoes would serve no use in protecting those dainty feet from rocks and the toils of travel.

Her clothing was directed more towards being pretty, instead of providing practicality.

And that staff. It was clear to everyone at this point that it was in all likelihood some ancient family relic. Probably something akin to Lakyus's Dark Sword. Or maybe just an elegant looking staff. You never knew when it came to nobles. But the way it shone was probably a result of an enchantment geared towards intimidation rather than an indicator of actual power. No adventurer would have a staff with details as intricate as that one. It wasn't a weapon meant to be wielded in combat, it was a piece of art meant to be hung up in some dusty treasury.

The receptionist doubted the staff would be of much actual use, especially if the purpose of it was just to look pleasant. Even on the highly unlikely chance that it was indeed some powerful magical item, she would need to be a magician to fully utilize it. And from the looks of it, the woman didn't strike anyone as a powerful mage. More like a spoiled noble.

Apparently the receptionist had been thinking for far too long when she suddenly noticed the silver haired lady glancing at her quizzically. Recovering from her short scrutiny of the woman before her, she continued asking.

"Are you by yourself?"

"Yes. Well, I have a..." the woman halted, pondering the proper word to use in this scenario. "...pet."

"Ah, a companion you mean." The receptionist adjusted the word to the properly used term for animals used by Adventurers.

It was very common for Adventurers to have a tamed beast as a companion, since it would usually help in fulfilling requests. If your tamed beast was special enough, you could receive a highly specialized request, which only you, the owner of the tamed beast could fulfill. But that was only if you could tame said beast.

Although it was considered a common practice among Adventurers, actually raising a tamed beast was typically more trouble than it was worth. Taming a wild beast was an arduous process to begin with, not to mention the amount of money one would have to sink into taking care of it. You needed to tame them, train them to suit your needs, and most importantly, feed them. Few Adventurers had that much time or resources on their hands. It was far more efficient to pick low paying jobs that were available year-round like collecting herbs or slaying goblins. Even though the money received would be small in comparison to more difficult jobs, it was still a stable and sufficient source of income.

Nobles usually used highly trained guard dogs. Thinking this, the surrounding Adventurers snickered behind the silver haired woman's back. If their hypothesis turned out to be correct, this woman would probably use the same dog as those nobles.

What an idiot… was the general consensus of everybody gathered in the lobby.

A measly dog against enemies as strong as trolls or even the Wise King of the Forest.

Some of them even laughed at the sheer arrogance and naivete of the woman.

How ridiculous! No matter how highly trained the dog could be, a mutt was still a mutt. It would probably end up serving as a snack for those monsters.

"Yes, companion." She corrects herself as she glances at the Adventurers who were laughing behind her back, seemingly confused as to why they were laughing.

Oh Lord, the irony.

"I see. Do you know how the Adventurers' Guild's system works?" the receptionist gently asked.

The silver haired woman shakes her head, "Sadly, I don't. I only arrived in the city this morning. I would be very grateful if you could clarify it for me."

Their assumption changed yet again.

A stupid noble's daughter who wanted to play hero. Another one of those. What was it with fancy looking pricks suicidal chick was probably going to die from the very first goblin she encounters.

The receptionist nodded in understanding, "Then I shall explain the regulations of the Adventurers' Guild as well as the registration requirements. If you would, please follow me."

The receptionist lead the woman to one of the more private waiting rooms, and after asking the woman to sit on the sofa, the receptionist left to grab the guidebook and the necessary documents and returns to the private waiting room.

{After a quarter of an hour of explaining the rules and guidelines regarding the adventurer's guild's ranks and requests.}

"Did you get all that?" So far the woman had only nodded in confirmation, but she was too quiet, and no questions had been asked

"Yes" the woman replies. "The rules are simple enough. I believe it will be easy to uphold all of them."

"Excellent, then all that's left is for you to fulfill the requirements to join the guild. There are only two requirements; you are obligated to pay an entry fee of five silver coins, in addition to signing the required documents which you can take right here at the Adventurers' guild for five copper coins."

"In that case, I'll do so immediately." She puts said amount of coins on the table.

"Congratulations, with these you have been admitted as an Adventurer in this guild, Ms. Hannah. What an interesting name. Are you by any chance from the Dragon Kingdom?"

"Ah, my home town is far further than that..."

That reply was peculiar seeing as the Dragon Kingdom was the furthest human nation known. But whatever. "Here is your copper plate. As I have explained before, this will act as identification when you go adventuring so make sure you don't lose it."

She nods, her face looking especially accomplished. "Oh, regarding my companion, will he have to sign up as well?"

"Well, yes. You have to sign him up. If it's a horse you can just list it as such, assuming you want them to be an official part of the Adventurers' Guild and partake in quests. It's really up to you."

"I see. He can't really write, nor read though, will that be alright?"

"Yes. Um? Wait? What? You have an intelligent companion?" the receptionist coughs, choking on her own saliva. But her mouth gets dryer and dryer by the second at this new information. "An intelligent tamed beast?" she reaches for the glass of water in front of her and began drinking.

The receptionist's thoughts halted in her mind in order to formulate a proper response.

"Sorry, um," she clears her throat. An Adventurer personally registering an intelligent tamed beast was rare, very rare. But this had been covered on the guidebook made by Guildmaster Pluton Ainzach. "Yes, actually, almost any adventurer can't write. On average only one person per team can read. So it shouldn't be a problem. Did you bring your companion with you? If you didn't, I can still fill in the necessary documentation for it. It is important to list the species of the beast. If it's something that naturally harms its surroundings, we might have to forbid it from entering the city. I hope you understand."

"Ummm, yes, I guess I could call him over. Except I don't think a regular tag will do for him?"

Call him over? The receptionist ponders upon hearing that phrase. That's…odd.

"Why is that? Is it some type of slime by any chance?"

"Well, if you would follow me." the silver haired woman says to the receptionist, and immediately gets up from the sofa and walks straight towards the main doors. The receptionist was confused by this but followed her nonetheless.

The rest of the adventurers saw the two women exit from the private room; the receptionist following straight behind the silver haired woman as if entranced, a fact that served to feed their curiosity even further.

Tiamat gently walks to the exit, puts two fingers in her mouth, and whistled so loudly it almost deafened the entirety of the guild. 

When people were about to laugh at the foolishness from the idiotic noble, they heard bells ringing. Not just a few. All of them! The entire city fell into chaos and screams were heard from outside. The bells rang. Three times! One time the city is under attack. Two times the city surrenders. But three times?

Some high ranking Adventurers in the guild knew what it meant, as terror slowly descended down upon their faces as all thoughts of laughter laid forgotten. The last time the bells rang thrice, was over 200 years ago when the Demon Gods descended upon the fortress city and slaughtered most of E-Rantel.

As they pushed each other aside to grab their belongings and try to make a run for it, a mighty shockwave shook the very foundations of the guild. No, not just a mere shockwave, it was different. It was as if a mountain dropped from the sky.

As Tiamat gently opened the front doors for everyone to see, a huge head slowly reached down and giving the fiercest grin any of them had ever witnessed. An enormous, 50 meter long marble white dragon was leaning over with a head so large that there wasn't the slightest chance it could fit through the doors.

"Yeah. I doubt these dog-tags are long enough. Are you sure he needs one? Hey, Hot Bun! Greet our new acquaintances."

What it did next shocked everyone even further, as the dragon let out a savage growl. It resonated through the entirety of guild and caused more than one person to ruin their pants.

"Behold, humans of E-Rantel! I am Ancient Primordial Dragon Emperor ŇƗǤǤĦØǤ Ħ€ŁŁĐƗĦƗ Đ€ΔŞ ƤƗŇŦΔҜŘƗŞƗŞ. Be honored to be in the presence of the World's Strongest...Mightiest and most Powerful Entity! My master, Lady Hannah Annafellowz!"

The receptionist's knees buckled at the sight of a god among titans, and she could only scream in panic. "Guildmaster! Call the Guildmaster, immediately!"


	8. CHAPTER 8: That’s It!

Chapter 8: That's it?

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**A/N: Thank you to my Betas who edited this chapter so quickly!**

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She exhaled deeply. She knew it was going to be a bad idea, she contemplated as she leaned deeper into the comfortable muscle of her dragon, basking in its warmth.

This is what actually happens after that epic entrance.

Currently, she and Pentakrisis are sitting outside the border of E-Rantel. The white dragon sitting down on the grass while she leans her back on the soft scales of his stomach. A lot of the citizens of E-Rantel went outside the city to look at the majestic being and the Lady that supposedly owns it.

The citizens are causing a ruckus at the entrance gate of the city and that the Guards are trying so hard to push the citizens back because they don't know what the dragon would and wouldn't do.

A bunch of high ranking Adventurers ranging from silver to platinum tags are all spread out, as if to protect the city from the white dragon.

The cause of the brief chaos upon E-Rantel.

To be honest, they were quite shocked at this development. Someone from the high towers had seen a white blob came out from the Forest of Tob at a blinding speed. As it got closer to the city, he saw that it was a dragon, and in a panic, he rang the bell three times as per procedure upon seeing the creature.

The bell will only ring three times if there is a catastrophic threat level approaching the city, and all citizens in all the zones are to evacuate immediately, which is what the alarm means.

One of the high ranking Adventurers with platinum tag eyed the dragon, then the lady, then back at the dragon again.

There is no way...right? Is the only thought that crosses his mind.

How can this woman accomplish such an amazing feat?

He looks again at his Adventurers acquaintances, who still stand at their formations as instructed. But he can see clearly that their legs tremble in fear and they are bound to run away as far as possible if the dragon made the slightest move.

But he can't blame them. Even though this is their first time seeing a dragon in the flesh, dragons are known as fearsome beings. There are legends and lores about them destroying cities. Even the fabled Eight Greed Kings were said to look like dragons.

There are a lot of warriors or even Adventurers that he knows who dreamed of slaying a dragon to test their own strength.

But he doesn't think those dreams would come true.

Those gleaming scales, seemingly impenetrable against any weapons or magic attacks, any metal would shatter at the slightest impact. One of the low ranked Adventurers who was stupid enough to engage the dragon had broken his one and only steel sword, even if the dragon did nothing in return. So yes, it is impenetrable.

Moreover, even if something could penetrate those scales, the wall of muscles would stop such a weapon from injuring it deeper. Its huge claws and teeth could easily render steel useless. Its furnished wings could make it master of the sky; its size could destroy castles at the slightest touch, which was proven from when it landed in the residential zone of E-Rantel. Some buildings were totally leveled, and the ground shattered upon impact at its landing.

Not to mention its breath, even though this dragon had not used its breath on them, they knew that its breath would mow down those who oppose it.

The dragon's red orbs moved towards his direction, and it snarled as if to challenge him. He does notice that he had been staring at the dragon for quite some time, so he averted his gaze towards the silver haired woman.

Once again he pondered, how. How can this Lady tame this majestic being that most only heard from legends alone? And why such wise and powerful being would want this person to become its master?

Money? No that's impossible. No matter how rich she is, there is no way a dragon could be bought. Power? Now that's another separate issue…

But as soon as his stare changes to gaze at the silver haired beauty, the dragon snarled even harder.

Growl of dissatisfaction could be heard throughout the clearing – even the villagers who are some distance away from the dragon could hear its annoyance. At this low growl, their ruckus stopped, some mothers even quickly collected their children just in case something bad would happen. The guards who are focused on protecting the villagers turn their head towards the dragon behind them in fear. But those who were really scared were the Adventurers acting like a meat shield to protect the city from harm.

They would most likely be the first one amongst others to die a sudden death if the dragon were to unleash its wrath upon them.

"What are you looking at human…" the dragon had spoken again, its voice low and threatening. Apparently it was aimed towards one of the platinum tag Adventurers.

The rest of his friends could only look at him with vexation and nervousness, "What are you doing?! We are ordered to lay low for the time being, at least until the Guildmaster arrived…" one of them whispered harshly, afraid that this will be the end for his dear friend.

"I-I'm sorry…" he stammered, apologizing instantly towards both the dragon and its Lady.

She immediately caressed the white scales to calm down the dragon's anger. "Now, now" she said gently, "There is no need to get hostile, they didn't do anything...yet." her sharp amethyst eyes moves towards a band of gold tag Adventurers who are huddled together the moment the Guards and that panicking receptionist ordered her out of the city until the Guildmaster arrived to address the situation.

Even though she was disguised as a Priestess, it was only for appearance's sake. She did not lose any of her skills and abilities. As soon as they discovered that she, the seemingly weak and fragile Priestess owned a dragon, some of them started to brew plans to take advantage of this fact.

Her keen sense of hearing had heard one line in particular, and it had irked her, "Control the woman, then you can control her dragon."

They had been planning on using manipulation, and charm magic to woo her into their side, and then through her, they get to control her dragon to use it as they please.

Too bad her resist is over the chart. Such simple debuff wouldn't work on her. So she pretended not to notice their plain planning strategies, but to plan such idiotic action in front of her is an obvious insult to her intelligence.

She sweetly smiled at them and instantly the hairs on the backs of their necks stood in fear.

She knew that they knew that she knew.

Immediately they disbanded from their conversations, and went back to formation, staring at the ground in guilt and frustration.

'Idiots, the lot of them…'

"Oi," she called out to the Adventurers, "When is the Guildmaster going to be here?"

Some of the lower ranked Adventurers were afraid to answer her question. They didn't even look at her after the dragon had growled at one of the Platinum ranked Adventurers for doing so.

But sooner than later, her question was answered by the person himself.

The townspeople at the front gate were ushered away by other Adventurers as they seemed to part creating a way in the middle of the road for a man. Tiamat can see him advancing hurriedly exiting the gate and running towards her.

"I'm sorry I'm late." He panted for a bit, then looked at the woman in front of him in the eye, before eyeing the dragon in front of him with a look of disbelief.

Pluton Ainzanch is a capable man. During his adventurer days, he had captured an undead monster from the Katze Plains and delivered it to the Imperial Arena of the Baharuth Empire. As time went on, he had finally become a guild master of E-Rantel Adventurers Guild.

But in front of him was only something he had heard in legends.

He had heard of the Frost Dragon in Azerlia Mountains. Of course he did. He grew up with them.

And it was terrifying.

The Frost Dragon was a creature of legend and fear, for no one has ever tamed the beast. When it flew overhead, it left in its wake desolate cold and frozen land.

But Pluton was not afraid for he was a winter child.

On the day he was born, it was on the coldest month that anyone, even the elders, could remember.

With that said, he couldn't remember the first time he had seen a Frost Dragon. It seemed as if it was always in his life. Glimpsed from afar as he played in the cold snow after the other children had fled the frosty weather.

Yet, when he sees one in front of him right now, is everything he imagined a Frost Dragon to be.

Tiamat decided to give him a moment. Well she could somewhat understand from the reaction of the people around her that having a dragon here as a companion is not a common thing.

From here she could draw the conclusion that the adventurers system here are not as advanced as she thought and that the average level of Adventurers in E-Rantel is so much lower than the homunculi maids in Nazarick.

Quite pathetic…

After coming out of his stupor, the guild master cleared his throat, and her attention went back again to him.

"Nice to meet you, I am Pluton Ainzach." he offered a handshake towards her direction but instead of taking his handshake, she bowed instead.

The village chief's wife had told her that no man was allowed to touch a woman until they are married, that is proper behaviour on this world.

Afraid of causing a misunderstanding, she bowed instead of taking his handshake.

To be honest, now that she knew, she understood why the villagers were quite shocked when Gazef Stronoff suddenly took her hand when she saved Carne Village.

She's not blaming the Guildmaster either for not having proper ethics. He could've just forgotten, or being unused to it. There are not a lot of female adventurers in E-Rantel after all – he must be used to dealing with men more often than he thought.

"Nice to meet you too, Guildmaster. I am Hannah Annafelowz." after she gave a small curtsy, she showed the old man her newly acquired copper dog tag on her hips. "I'm new."

He took the copper plate to examine it, perhaps making sure if it was real. "Yes, I've heard."

"Seems like I've caused quite a commotion." She smiled on the outside, but on the inside she's excited, she could feel her blood flowing through her body and into her heart, causing it to beat loudly against her body.

This is her first move in the board game that Ainz created. She could only hope it would go her way.

"Yes." He returned back the copper plate to Tiamat, and looked at the dragon in question. "Destruction of property, posing a threat to the health and security of the people of E-Rantel, as well as scaring my fellow guild members."

"Aw, it can't be that bad." She replied, but he seems undeterred. "He was just saying hello. No one was harmed in the process?"

"You can understand it?" He simply asked her.

What…

"Of course. You don't?" She questioned the old man.

"From what I heard, your Frost Dragon growled loudly at the guild entrance, causing the members of the Adventurers' guild to collapse in shock and fear, and then I saw just now, it growled once again at that Platinum plate Adventurer..." he drawled, while the gears in Tiamat's head began to turn quickly.

Meanwhile Pentakrisis behind her had heard the whole conversation, and he growled angrily at the Pluton.

"How could you compare me to such insignificant, lowly creatures that are no better than mere horses. I am Pentakrisis! ŇƗǤǤĦØǤ Ħ€ŁŁĐƗĦƗ Đ€ΔŞ ƤƗŇŦΔҜŘƗŞƗŞ, an Ancient Primordial Dragon Emperor!" As he spread his wings threateningly at the Guildmaster.

At this point the meat shields had ran away to the safety of the walls of E-Rantel while the Guildmaster stayed.

Tiamat eyed the dragon disdainfully. This is an important first move against Ainz and no one, including her own summon would jeopardize it. At this point she could see that her application towards the adventurer's guild would be taken from her especially after Pentakrisis was disrespectful towards the Guildmaster.

"Stand down." She simply ordered. She did not move, and her eyes only looked to the dragon beside her.

The dragon obeyed, he folded his wings gracefully into the side and went back to sit behind her, just like before.

In return, Tiamat gave him a pat on his soft scales as a reward for following her orders.

She could understand the need of not wanting to be compared to Frost Dragons, but to be honest; he doesn't need to growl that loud.

"W-what was that!" Asked the Guildmaster in shock.

Tiamat could only sigh as she told the Guildmaster the truth. "He's offended."

"How do you know? Don't tell me…" he paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "Incredible…" he said quietly in awe.

His eyes widened in realization of fear and revelation and in one breath he said. "You can communicate with dragons…"

'Well, I'm fucked.' She thought to herself.

Apparently, all that epic entrance and Pentakrisis epic speech means shit because no one could understand what he said. To them he was just spouting growls, and that makes them fear him.

They thought the dragon came here to destroy them. Just like 200 years ago. She berated herself in her own mind, if only she paid more attention to her surroundings and how the people would react she would come with a plan to counter this situation.

"...yes." She modestly replied. "At the beginning I thought everyone could understand what my dragon said." She bowed at the Guildmaster apologetically. "I am really sorry. Now I understand why I was ushered out of the city. My dragon did not come to cause any harm, he just came by to say hello. I didn't know that. I sincerely apologize."

She bowed in accordance to the Japanese custom, a 90 degree bow, to sincerely convey how apologetic she was. She was still seeing the blades of grass from her position, fearing that the Guildmaster may be angry at her for causing such problems. This reminds her when she was chewed out at the bakery when she was first learning about baking.

And now it's going to happen again.

Even from her position, she could see that the Guildmaster was clenching his fist in frustration, and his body even trembles. She could only imagine how angry he would be in this kind of situation.

"...zing." He said quietly to Tiamat.

She raised her head, questioningly looking at the Guildmaster. "W-what?"

"Amazing! Simply amazing, young lady!" He Guildmaster excitedly said to Tiamat. "Most people aim to conquer a dragon and carry their carcass like a trophy, but you tame them, making them yours. Not only that you are able to tame a dragon, but you can also communicate with them. Such talent is unheard of!"

She stared at him in shock.

"I had heard of intelligent beast like the Wise King of the Forest who is able to communicate with humans, but humans having a talent to speak with beasts would be the first." He continued.

"I-I see…"

"This place won't do. Come with me. We have a lot to discuss." He turned his back from her and walked into the village.

"W-wait! You're not angry? You're not firing me?" She asked.

"Why would I be? Your talent is even greater than Nfirea Bareare's! I would be the most idiotic Guildmaster to turn you away from my guild."

"Oh…" she was shell shocked and pretty confused. In her head she had made ten different scenarios just in case the Guildmaster had rejected her application at the Adventurers Guild from moving to the Kingdom or the Empire, to use any form of violence to make this man agree to her proposal.

'I guess I don't need any of those plans now…' she thankfully thought in relief. Yes, winning against Ainz is important, but to torture someone for it wouldn't be her style.

The Guildmaster lead the way, waiting for Tiamat to come and follow him back into the city.

She turned to Pentakrisis and ordered him to go back to Nazarick as quick as he could without being followed. He obeyed by spreading out his large wings and flew away quickly to the sky, his scales gleaming against the sunlight.

She stood there, looking into the distance. The shadow of the dragon had become smaller and smaller until it couldn't be seen by mere human eyes. She won't walk away from the empty field until she had received a message from Aura that Pentakrisis had returned to Nazarick. Which apparently didn't take more than a couple minutes.

Then she gracefully walked behind the Guildmaster into the city with her staff in hand.

When she arrived at the gate of E-Rantel, the citizens and Adventurers who were bundled up together as if to watch a show parted ways, creating a path for her to walk in the middle of the street.

Knowing how awkward it was, she quickly followed behind Pluton towards the Guild Hall, which is thankfully not too far away from the main gate.

She knew she was going to be a spectacle, but the emotional burden as well as the people talking behind her back was making her body burn in embarrassment.

Adventurers who were spectating the scene returned once again to the guild hall as well, but they were still silent, observing her carefully when she and the Guildmaster climbed to the second floor to go to his office.

She guessed they must be judging her again by this point.

But she didn't pay any heed to that.

The Guildmaster opened the door to his office, "Ladies first." He offered.

"Thank you." She nodded politely.

It was a small, humble office with a wooden desk, and two brown worn sofas in the middle of the room, between them is a simple wooden coffee table. There were no decorations in the room that could brighten the place and documents were piling up on the wooden desk as well.

On the corner of the room were spider webs entwined together. One of the arachnids even dared to get close to her, but she just shook it off.

Despite all that, the room was unexpectedly neat.

To be perfectly honest, why is the interior design of this world so simple? Everything seems to be made out of wood. Tiamat with her keen sense of smell could smell the mustiness of the room, and from the corner of her eye, she could see termites slowly eating away at all the furniture.

As she entered the room, she could feel a thin layer of paper tape circling around her body. Must've been a spider web clinging to her, so she just broke it by sending brushing it off with her hand

She sat on one of the sofas, and small cloud of dust rises up in the air.

Yet all she could think was how excited she currently was.

She was now in the office of one of the most influential persons in E-Rantel. It was literally too easy…

Well for the time being she was comfortable.

On the opposite side of the sofa sat the Guildmaster, and the receptionist stood behind him.

She could see the receptionist trembled at the sight of Tiamat, even though she was not threatening her in any way. The receptionist eyes kept wandering around, as if she didn't want to look at Tiamat. Perhaps she was traumatized by the sight of the dragon at the entrance from before?

"Well, I'm really sorry for the sudden invitation. Right now we are going to discuss about your companion and your status within the guild."

"Is having a dragon as a companion considered a bad thing?" She quickly interjected the Guildmaster by playing dumb, asking him innocently like a child who did not know anything about the world.

"Well it's not bad per se. This just complicates your ranks as well as the request that is going to come for you personally. But aside from that I want to personally ask you something."

She nodded. "Of course, ask away."

"Are you the same Hannah Annafellowz who was rumoured to have saved Gazef Stronoff at Carne village the other day?"

As soon as the question was thrown away by Pluton Ainzach, the receptionist finally looked at Tiamat with her mouth wide open.

The Adventurers Guild is an organization that is not tied down to politics so that the guild can cooperate with each other in different countries.

With such a wide array of bureaus between these countries, there is also a lot of information that went back and through each guild through the form of rumours.

Two days ago, they have heard rumours that Carne village was attacked, and Gazef Stronoff came to their rescue. But he was late. Instead of him, a traveller had been generous enough to save the village, and the only thing they knew about this traveller was her name.

Hannah Annafellowz.

Even after she had saved the village she had stayed because apparently there was an assassination attempt directed towards Gazef Stronoff, and she had chased the assassins off, saving Gazef and his company of warriors in the process.

It was one of the most talked about rumours that had been circling around the Adventurers' guild these past few days.

She should've known.

She did mention when the lady registered at the guild that her name was somewhat familiar, but she had failed to connect the dots.

The lady that is currently sitting in front of them could probably be a legend in the making.

At that moment, Tiamat stared back at the guild master and she lightly shrugged her shoulders as she answered.

"Perhaps…"

To be honest, Tiamat didn't want to confirm this information, even if it was true. This is because she doesn't know what is the point that the Guildmaster is trying to achieve.

The Guildmaster nodded his head at Tiamat's ambiguous explanation.

"You have to understand that there had been rumours going around the city about the attack at Carne Village. Moreover, another rumour has also been circling around that the same person had also saved Gazef Stronoff in his time of need. This is unprecedented in the guild. However, with that kind of achievement, a copper plate is no longer suitable for someone of your calibre."

The Guildmaster continued his speech calmly, "Not to mention this could also affect the guild, such action will trouble us as it would set a bad example and represent us negatively in the eyes of society. They will see a guild not giving the correct rank to someone who clearly deserves it. Even though your action is tied politically towards Re-Estize Kingdom, Gazef Stronoff is considered a hero, and the action of saving innocent villagers from being plundered is an act that deserves to be rewarded. With your current rank, you would be unable to stay at the guild if affected by fame of this calibre. Also, someone could aim at your life too."

Finally saying it in a manner that Tiamat could understand, Tiamat nodded in understanding.

But this all she says is "I see…"

Hearing her words, the Guildmaster flapped his mouth in disbelief, like a fish out of water. Both him and the receptionist stuck into silence, their expression unmoving, just like stone.

The same thoughts cross into their minds. Does she really don't care about her own safety and security?

"...Was it really you?" He asked once again.

"You can say that." Tiamat phrase her words in such a way that would give them reaffirmation of what they had already speculated, but no words of confirmation had left her mouth.

"Hearing that, I'm really relieved. Honestly, with that being said, a copper plate wouldn't be enough for you. Especially after you have told us that you also have a dragon companion." His face darkened for a minute. "Is it possible for the Adventurers guild to borrow your dragon for requests?"

Tiamat could see it in his eyes. Unimaginable greed. Someone who would do anything to achieve what they want. And in this case, her dragon is at risk.

She had two options at this point. She could refuse him, or she could lie.

"Even though the dragon is my companion, he does not belong to me. A dragon is like the wind, you can't hold it, you can't control it, and it is free to do whatever it wants to. I can't force him to do anything if he doesn't want to." An obvious lie. Her dragons are loyal, they will fall on a sword if she commanded them too, but this is something that only she and anyone in Nazarick would know.

"But you are its Master, are you not?" He persisted.

"Sir, with all due respect. Do you know what I am?"

"No, I don't."

"You see, I am a Priestess." She showed him her staff. "A disciple of the Goddess of Dragons, and for my journey, she has kindly lent me one of her children. That dragon is mine, but it does not belong to me. Everything I do with regards to the dragon will have to be approved by the Goddess herself." She bluffed smoothly.

Using her title of a divine being to hold back this growingly greedy Guildmaster is one way to get out of the situation.

She had heard from the Elders at the Carne village that most people in this world believe in divine entities and that they are afraid of making those beings angry.

By tying herself to a divine entity, they wouldn't dare to force her into something she didn't want her or her dragons to do.

Finally the Guildmaster relented. "If that was the case…"

The receptionist, who up until now was silently listening to the conversation, began to speak.

"Master, about the copper plate…"

Pluton scowled in disappointment at the piece of information he had just received. But no matter. As long as they had the Priestess on their side, the dragon would surely follow. "Ah yes. Lady Hannah, I will promote your rank from Copper to Mythril. This will be effective immediately. Congratulations for your promotion. You are the first person in history to have gone up to Mythril in just one day."

Hold up…

Just Mythril?!

"With this you can access A-rank quest through the guild receptionist, moreover you will also receive personal quests where the client would be asking for you personally. Do you agree with this decision?"

She smiled at him through gritted teeth. "I see, that's not bad."

Even though Tiamat doesn't know, but this compromise is the best the Guildmaster could afford at this point. Pluton had the assumption that Hannah is a fast thinker; it was really regrettable that they couldn't use her dragon as they please.

"We seem to have no problem with this. What do you think Lady Hannah?"

"Actually, I do think that Mythril is far too low for me. Is it possible to be promoted to Adamantine instead?"

The Guildmaster frowned, clearly puzzled.

"Usually the rank of an Adventurer would increase after passing a test from the Adventurers' guild. Basically the rank increases step by step, but if an Adventurer receives a major feat, like you did, it is possible to skip several ranks. But with Adamantine rank things are different. Adamantine adventurers in short, are heroes. They are someone who had saved a country from harm, someone with a high enough achievement that it is considered normal for them to receive that plate. But you are new Lady Hannah, despite your stellar achievements, it couldn't be compared to those of Adamantine rank."

As she thought, it would be hard to receive an instant promotion at this point, but that's fine. She had one final plan that would make sure she won the game against Ainz.

"That is regrettable, but I could see your point. Mythril plate is fine." She agreed.

"But I am indeed curious, and I hate bothersome chit chat so I am going to ask directly. You could go to the Royal Capital of the Kingdom or even the Empire and register as an Adventurer, but you choose E-Rantel. Why is that? Who are you really?"

Tiamat kept silent, wondering how she could explain this. Suddenly, the Guildmaster opened his clenched plan in front of her. His palm was disgustingly shined with greasy sweat.

"Look at this hand of mine. Ever since I met you in that field, I kept on sweating endlessly. My years of experience have honed my instinct and it keeps on telling me that you are a dangerous person."

Well, she had turned Phobos Ambience, one of her passive skills off, as well as many other passive skills that had to do with aura off. She still believes she currently comes off as just a harmless Priestess, turns out the Guildmaster thinks differently.

"In my youthful days, I was a reckless adventurer. I even fought and captured an undead monster. I have escaped so many life and death situations many times and won against these opponents, there were even those who quickly surrendered to me. However, you are clearly exceptional."

"Master, you're the kind of person who is into young girls huh?" The receptionist looked at the Guildmaster in disdain.

"―N-NO, WA-WAIT! I don't have that kind of hobby!"

Taking control from Guildmaster who was desperately trying to explain himself, the receptionist is beckoning to me "Now-now, please sit back down.", so for the time being, she sat on the sofa. Of course, she sat as far away as possible from the Guildmaster.

He cleared his throat, "I don't have nearly enough field experience to make me understand your level by instinct like the current Adamantine ranked Adventurers… but even so, I know that you are an extraordinary being. You are aware of it right? The barrier and detection magic which I spread around the room."

"Are you talking about that spider web on the corner of the room?"

In the beginning, she just wanted to shake it off and not break it, but it kept getting in her way and it bothered her since it persistently entwined around her frame, so she just shook it with a bit and it happened to break.

"Are you saying that the barrier was simply a _spider thread_?"

Hearing the shocked Guildmaster speech, she became shocked too.

That was a barrier? That means monsters that are slightly weaker than the Wise King of the Forest Right? She had heard of the tales of the Wise King of the Forest and how powerful it was by keeping the Forest of Tob safe from intruders and from the power struggles within the forest itself.

There's no way. It's so weak! Even weaker than YGGDRASIL first-tier detection magic.

It seems that she had severely overestimated their skills. At this point if that is the best they can offer to protect the Guildmaster's office, then it is obviously going to be useless against her.

Her stats are stacked with lots of passive abilities including High Resistance X which could be used to counter detection magic or even strong debuffs.

"As I told you, I am the disciple of the Goddess of Dragons. What you felt is probably the Goddess divine aura protecting me from harm." She answered him to make him stray away from the topic.

Thankfully, he was easily baited. "But why E-Rantel?"

She sighed, her brain thinking hard how to approach the situation. She couldn't outright tell him that she has to assert herself within the guild before Ainz could, making her move before Ainz comes to E-Rantel three days from now.

"I was actually hunting a certain vampire for a long time. I have a bit of history with her."

"Oh." The Guildmaster exclaimed, obviously intrigued. "What kind of history do you have with this vampire?"

Fuckkkkk.

"She…" Tiamat grabbed her dress in frustration, she had to quickly come up with a lie that was believable but private enough that it wouldn't be investigated. "She murdered my family." She sighed, looking down at her knees, hoping that this lie would be convincing enough. "I had heard from my sources that she is close to E-Rantel, that's why I registered here as an Adventurer hoping that I would be the one to defeat her."

A small silence passes through the room.

Tiamat continues to clench her dress, hoping that they would buy her bluff.

"I am sorry for your loss." The Guildmaster was the first person to break the silence.

She opened her eyes wide. 'He bought it!'

His eyes become sullen, and the receptionist expression had dropped to pity.'

"That's alright, there's no way you could've known." She replied, giving him a small smile, totally relieved.

He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Well, I'm assuming this had been a long day for you. Where are you staying in E-Rantel?"

"I haven't thought about that. Is there any place you would recommend?"

"There is an inn nearby," the receptionist suddenly answered.

But the Guildmaster interjected her "W-wait that inn is…"

"The inn is called Wooden Horse; you can form a party there. If there are also private quests designated for you, I will also notify you at the inn, so you can rest assured." The receptionist continued.

"I see. Then, I will go based on your recommendation." Tiamat agreed with the receptionist. She had worked for a long time, judging by how she handled things. So Tiamat trust her decisions that she must know where cheap inns were.

"Alright then, I guess we are all settled here." The Guildmaster slid the Mythril plate at the table towards Tiamat's direction. "Here is your Mythril plate, and welcome to the Adventurers' guild."

"Thank you." She stood up and left the room.

After she closed the door, the Guildmaster told the receptionist in hushed whispers. "I want someone to tail her 24/7. Tell me of all the requests she takes as well. Make no mistakes."

The receptionist didn't reply, but Tiamat had heard that. She smiled wickedly at the corridor, silently excited of what's about to come.

(ʃƪ¬‿¬)

From the second floor window of the Wooden Horse inn, she pondered about the words that the Guildmaster had said after she left the room while she's gazing down at the city that is currently submerged in the darkness of the night.

After she left the Guildmaster's office and went back to the lobby, the place had turned chaotic. Different groups would ask her to join in as their member as soon as they saw her gleaming new Mythril plate resting at her hips.

Her patience had clearly run out and she had in turn intentionally ignored them, which made most of them break down in front of her. To calm everybody down, she quickly asked one of the receptionists to give her an A-rank quest, and then she bolted out of the guild hall.

Afterwards she tried to look for the inn called Wooden Horse. Thankfully she had learnt a small portion of the country's language, so she's able to read shop signs.

After she found the inn her step quickened and to her dismay, she stepped on a puddle of mud with her white shoes. Scraping some of it off, she finally entered the saloon through wooden doors.

It was awful.

There were dirty and disgusting places in YGGDRASIL, of course. Even the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick which Ainz ruled over contained such places, such as Kyouhukou's room, the Venomous Cave, and so on.

However, the filth here was different from those places.

The floor was covered in scraps of mysterious food and unknown liquids, while the walls were stained and there were chunks of some mouldy substance in the corners of the room…

She sighed, and looked at the man behind the bar.

A man in a dirty apron stood there, his stout arms protruding from his rolled-up sleeves. They were covered in several scars, and she could not tell if they were caused by the claws of wild beasts or by blades of some sort.

He looked somewhere between imposing and bestial, and there were scars on his face as well. His head was shaved completely bald, without a single hair left standing on his scalp.

This man, who looked more like a bouncer than an innkeeper, sized her up as he held a mop in one hand.

He had tried to force her to enter a mixed dormitory under the pretense of making a group of adventurers, basically recruiting. After she had persistently mentioned that she had no plan of recruiting anyone in this inn, he finally relented and asked her to pay five copper coins per night.

When she finally went into the room, she hurriedly locked it down, and began casting spells throughout the room ranging from silencing spells to resist infiltration spells.

After she was done, she took a break at the simple wooden chair by the window.

『Gate』

She opened the gate and Yuri Alpha passed through it, just like she had previously planned.

"My Lady." She greeted Tiamat. "Good job for today."

She immediately leaped from her chair and gave Yuri a big hug. Having to travel from Carne Village to E-Rantel, was terribly lonely. Moreover, she didn't realize how tense she was until Yuri was here with her. "Yuri! I missed you so much!"

Yuri just stood there, stupefied by her Supreme Being. Clearly she was happy that her Supreme Being is showering her with affection, but she was unsure as to how she could return her open affection. To be honest, Yuri misses Lady Tiamat as well. Not just her, but a lot of the Floor Guardians missed her presence within Nazarick. It's relieving that apparently Lady Tiamat felt the same way.

Tiamat leaned into her, completely relaxed now that someone she knew was here with her. She let her go and gave her a big smile and Yuri smiled back at her.

"How were things at Nazarick?" she asked.

Yuri fixed her glasses upwards. "Currently Lord Ainz and Narberal Gamma are preparing to set off three days for now. Lord Ainz is also catching up on his work for when he leaves. What about you, My Lady."

She sat back down into the chair, "Ah… nothing is clear, looks like it's not true that this world is completely unaffected by YGGDRASIL."

"What would you like to do, My Lady?" Yuri inquired, "To be perfectly honest, you could take over the city by using your dragons in mere seconds, or even throwing in a charm magic to take over the guild. I don't understand why you have to spend your time here at this crude, miserable shack. Should we return to Nazarick at once?"

Yuri gave her a really good advice.

Should she return to Nazarick?

Well, although the whole Nazarick knew about the bet that she and Ainz had made back then, the point here is not to take over, but to see who raised rank quicker.

Perhaps she should say that throwing a simple charm spell would be against her aim, but what Yuri said had caused a lot of misinterpretations. She said that this inn is a miserable shack, even though this is the inn where Gold to Mythril Adventurers seemed to stay.

"It's fine Yuri, I have achieved my first goal. However, I do feel quite uneasy about what the Guildmaster said before."

"Indeed, I have been notified by one of the Eight-Edged Assassins who escorted you into the city, it is highly likely that the Guildmaster will become an obstacle."

"Moreover Yuri, I also want to find out more about the history of this country. From what I've heard, it seems that there had been people from YGGDRASIL who came into this world hundreds of years ago. Has Neuronist finished interrogating the Sunlight Scripture members?"

"Neuronist has finished her interrogations a couple hours ago, My Lady. Shall I get in touch with Neuronist after this?"

Tiamat nodded in confirmation. Before taking her first A-ranked quest for tomorrow, she needed to know all the information extracted from the Sunlight Scripture since it could be useful. She could never be too careful.

"Understood. By the way My Lady, it seems that you haven't finished your meal given by the inn. Should I go and provide your dinner for tonight?"

Ah… that's true, the inn had indeed provided her with oatmeal and vegetables. However the sauces and spices on the vegetables was overpowering everything, therefore she couldn't eat even a quarter of the provided meal that was served here. Usually in Nazarick, she had always finished her plates because she knows that she doesn't want to waste Nazarick's supply of food.

"I don't need anything for tonight. Instead, I'll rely on you for the breakfast by tomorrow morning. But make sure that you're not going overboard."

Honestly, she was hesitant on asking Yuri to prepare for her meals, because Yuri tends to over-prepare. On her first breakfast at Nazarick, she had prepared twenty different plates of breakfast menus (at Nazarick; this part is redundant). Which was completely unnecessary. She ended up sharing her portions with the homunculi maids as well as the dark elf twins.

"―Of course, I will be careful. Then, I'll see you tomorrow, My Lady."

With those words spoken, Tiamat opened 『Gate』so that Yuri may return to Nazarick, and let her prepare for tomorrow.

"Come to think of it, is everyone in good spirits?"

During the night when she was about to sleep, all she could think of was her family that is far away from her. She could only hope that she quickly finished this small game before Ainz even gets there. She misses them terribly.


	9. CHAPTER 9: Tears of the Sea

**CHAPTER 9: Tears of the Sea**

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**A/N: This chapter is co-authored by **_hackslashbash. _**Thank you for sacrificing hours of work into this chapter.**

**Due to inconsistencies, Chapter 7 is re-uploaded.**

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That night, she slept at the inn. The straw bed and its pathetic excuse of a cover had kept her up all night. She had missed her bed in Nazarick terribly. As soon as she opened her bleary eyes, Yuri had come through 『Gate』 to greet her.

"It's time to wake up, My Lady." Yuri said with her usual smile.

She snuggled deeper into her pillow. The bed was horrible, but the pillow was alright, and it was still better than her pillow back on earth. She wanted to sleep more, but more sleep means more time in that awful straw abomination. With that thought in mind she reluctantly sat herself up on the bed.

"Mrn'n Yuri…" she drawled, still feeling sleepy.

Tiamat sat up on the bed, but she still had her eyes closed. She is awake, but needed to take some time to collect all her lost HP from this God awful bed…

Through her sharp sense of hearing, she could hear the soft tinkle of metal against glass. Yuri was probably doing something related to that. Then as soon as Yuri finished, she could smell the best scents to date ever since she arrived in this Fortress City.

"For today's breakfast, I have prepared poached salmon and mint salad. We have toast, scones, and Pain de Campagne on the side. Which would you prefer My Lady?"

"Mn, scooones…"

"The tea set is wedgwood blue and white, courtesy of Lady Bukubukuchagama."

She remembered that tea set; Bukubuku-chan had wanted to buy that tea set with her salary after she finished that ecchi voiceover. She had been a fan of the neoclassical style, and had been saving up to buy the Jasperware tea set which had survived the apocalypse and was auctioned at a ridiculously high price.

Of course she didn't get the teapot, so instead she did the next best thing and asked a designer to insert it into the game. Ainz had agreed, because if some of the members kept copyrighted books and other paraphernalia in the Nazarick library, he couldn't see how adding one tea set would hurt.

Yuri put the breakfast on the rickety wooden table, and helped her walk to the chair in her morning grogginess. But her eyes immediately widened at the delicious spread in front of her and she started to devour it.

Yuri poured the tea into the iconic blue and white cup, and its divine scent wafted over to Tiamat. The relaxing scent of tea combined with breakfast, as she had said before, couldn't be more comforting.

"It's delicious Yuri, thank you very much."

"Seriously," she mused, "This tastes a thousand times better than the oatmeal that the inn offered."

"It was nothing My Lady. Should I read out the information Neuronist-san has gathered?"

She nodded.

"After the interrogation session by Neuronist-san, she had found out that they are called the Sunlight Scripture and came here to interrogate Gazef Stronoff by using the Baharuth Empire as a diversion. A man called Nigun had mentioned during his session that a noble within the Re-Estize Kingdom had been working with Slane Theocracy to kill Gazef Stronoff. However, the noble's identity had been concealed from the Sunlight Scripture. Just as you suspected, My Lady."

"What else did you get from Neuronist?

Yuri fixed her glasses upwards. "Apparently the Slane Theocracy possesses the strongest national power due to its powerful military presence. They also have the greatest fighting ability among all the countries on the continent. For instance, they conducted espionage operations within the bordering nations with the intention of suppressing demi-humans and other non-human races. Moreover, they are also capable of conducting large scale rituals and resurrection magic."

"Demi-humans and other races?" she questioned Yuri. She felt that that was an odd distinction to make. Couldn't humans be of threat as well? Why so oddly specific?

"Yes. The Slane Theocracy's doctrine promotes the discrimination and eradication of all demi-humans and non-humans. They see the formation and existence of demi-humans nations as a grave threat to the supremacy of humanity. Their military had wiped out entire villages of demi-humans in accordance to their doctrine."

"Hoo?" she mulled to herself. "Interesting..."

Interesting indeed. In all probability if there are human players from YGGDRASIL who came into this world like she and Ainz did, then they would definitely agree with the Theocracy's xenophobic beliefs and join the country to serve its cause.

As far as she knows, there are no Adventurers' Guild in the Theocracy. So it would be impossible for her to receive any private quests from that country in the future. Right now, she could definitely rest assured that she most definitely has to keep her distance from the Theocracy.

At the same time, she noticed that there was a startling flaw in their nation's ideology. What if they were bordered by a powerful non-human entity like Nazarick? Their radical citizens would most likely come together and form a militant movement against Nazarick, but that would be their downfall, and would likely result in them destroying themselves in the process.

Turns out Yuri was far from finished, and she pulls her back from that train of thought. "Moreover My Lady, they are currently at war with the Elf Country, however their progress is slow since it is difficult for humans to transverse the woodlands. However, Elves are currently popular as slaves within the Theocracy, resulting in numerous slaver excursions to the country."

"Elf slaves?" that was surprising. She thought that a country with such strong humanocentrism beliefs would at least promote the same rights to the same kin. In YGGDRASIL, humans and elves would often work together to PK the heteromorphs. But in this world the elves turns out to be slaves huh?

Tiamat let out a small chuckle towards that piece of information. "How ironic…"

"That's the information that Neuronist had gathered from the Sunlight Scripture members you've captured My Lady. I have the full report with me if you wish to read it as well." Yuri handed a thick paper report to Tiamat, to which she accepted gratefully.

"Good job Yuri." she gave the report a quick skim. Most of the content in the reports were about Talents and the political relationships of the Theocracy with other countries. Those bits of information were important but she doesn't think they'll be useful when she's taking her very first quest.

Putting the report in her inventory, she looks at the small parchment she placed on the table the night before.

[A-rank quest.

Submitted by : Captain Barbbossa

Quest : A curse has been attacking the sailors at the port west to Re-Estize Kingdom. Please purify the curse that ails the sailors.

Reward : 50 gold coins]

She silently mulled over the somewhat eerie quest. She had grabbed one in a panic, since she wanted to avoid anyone who wanted to recruit her into their team, but luckily, the quest she grabbed had turned out to be very interesting.

'They call it a curse, but in YGGDRASIL can it be classified as a debuff? What sort of curse is it and why only sailors?'

No matter, she could find out on her way.

Unknowingly, her body shivered in excitement. This is her very first adventure here in the New World, and a sense of nostalgia washed over her. Too bad that the rest of Ainz Ooal Gown couldn't be here.

Her mind continued to wander, and she wondered who their friends would side with in her bet with Ainz. Well, she roughly knows the answer to that question.

Bukubukuchagama would immediately go to her side, and Peroroncino would unwittingly be dragged along by Bukubukuchagama even though he would want to side with Ainz. Then Ulbert, Tabula, and Ainz would make this evil alliance just to satisfy themselves in ultra-winning the bet. While Touch Me-san would unwittingly become the mediator.

She silently smiled to herself. It was fun reminiscing about the good old days.

But soon that smiled turned sour, because she knew, if only she had done something, anything, they could have had an eternal adventure together.

"Thank you for today Yuri, you may return to Nazarick." she opened『Gate』, and an ominous portal cut through reality, opening up into an oval, swirling, waiting for Yuri to be transported to Nazarick.

"Should I help you prepare, My Lady?" Yuri asked, looking as if she wanted to stay longer with Tiamat. She had noticed her mood had changed almost immediately after looking at the low-quality parchment, and she wondered what was wrong.

Even though the Supreme Being in front of her was tender-natured and motherly towards all the citizens of Nazarick. Yuri had known that Lady Tiamat, despite showing her gentle, sensitive side towards her and the Floor Guardians must have had countless worries of her own as well. But their Lady doesn't seem to open up her heart to anyone, not even Lord Ainz.

Yuri was actually against Lady Tiamat going out of Nazarick by herself. Even though she had repeatedly begged her Lady to at least bring a full party of mercenary summons with her, she still refused, saying that her Pentakrisis would be enough.

Honestly she felt jealous of her younger sister, Nabe. Nabe's job is to protect Lord Ainz, and she gets to do so inside and outside of Nazarick. But Yuri wasn't even given the chance.

Yuri had consulted her sisters, asking them what could possibly be wrong with her that the Supreme Being did not want her protection, and her sisters couldn't say anything since what has been given to Yuri was the Supreme Being's decision.

"My Lady…" Yuri forced out, finding it difficult to find the right words. "Can't I go with you just for today?" she pleaded.

Pleading… her eyes widened in realization and she immediately knelt down in shame. How low of her to beg the Supreme Being to entertain her selfishness.

Of course Lady Tiamat would choose her own Dragon instead of herself. How could she make such obvious blunder? There was no way she could be compared against her Lady's very own majestic creations.

"Yuri…" Tiamat looked at Yuri, and her heart ached. She could see that Yuri was sincere in her request, and she could understand why she wanted to come with her, but a bet is a bet…

"I'm sorry for being too bold, My Lady! Please forgive me!"

Tiamat smiled softly to Yuri, whose head was still down. "Tell you what Yuri, let's make a compromise."

"A compromise, My Lady?"

Yuri finally looked up, and there her Supreme Being sits. She is sitting on the only wooden chair in the room, and behind her back is a small window that allowed light to shine into the dingy room. Her Lady sat there, completely out of place in the miserable inn room, yet still shone with an aura of regality and nobility.

Her hair is a gleaming river of silver, reflecting the morning sun and her eyes held the allure of violet moonlight. Those orbs twinkled playfully as if they had discovered some amusing secret. She angled her face to look towards Yuri's direction until her face was suffused in the radiant sun.

Here, Yuri kneels in awe towards the Supreme Being. Even under disguise, she couldn't deny the waves of power that surges through the Dragoness's body. She had expected to be punished, and she understood that she definitely deserved it. However none of it mattered. In front of her, fear and grief and close kept secrets held no sway over the Goddess. Instead her eyes were filled with love and kindness.

"After I finish the bet with Ainz, no matter the outcome, you can come with me. How does that sound?" she offered towards the eldest sister of the Pleiades.

Yuri's breath immediately catches in her throat and without her even realizing, she had happily answered, "Yes. With pleasure My Lady!"

Tiamat nodded. "Good, I don't know how long the bet is going to take, but if things go as I planned, then it will not take more than two days. I hope you can wait until then."

"I understand My Lady." and gracefully rose from her kneel as she returned to Nazarick. Her heart swelled with pride. Lady Tiamat had given her a chance to prove that Yuri is capable of protecting her, and Yuri was not so foolish as to waste such an opportunity.

After Yuri went back to Nazarick, she closed『Gate』and stood up to start preparing for the day. As she went over the numerous tasks ahead of her in her head, she released an exhausted sigh.

She knew that being a Supreme Being was hard. Very hard. Apparently in this new world there were a lot of expectations that came with the title. She kinda understood why Ainz had to be the way he is to uphold his own image.

If she were to be honest to everyone, she would immediately tell them the truth. The truth that she and Ainz were nothing, no one, nobodies. Just sad excuses of people trying to escape a reality that is stacked against them, questioning if the current reality that they were in is even real. Ainz was just a young adult who had a lot of insecurities while Hannah, the real Hannah, was a failure of an adult.

They were not an Overlord and a Goddess. Both of them were just broken people in the same circumstances. Yet, she could feel her heart slowly breaking at the maids' and Floor Guardians' disappointment if they were to know the truth.

She couldn't afford to let them know.

She couldn't afford to disappoint her new family.

Shaking these thoughts out of her head, she noticed the heat rising up in her room. Apparently she had unconsciously activated her passive aura. Quickly switching her passive off, she hurriedly began to prepare to go on her quest. Thankfully the room had a bathroom furnished with a small mirror.

Using her item, 『Ragnarok Scale』, an item that allows the user to disguise themselves in any appearance or race they desired. She found this to be a lot easier than having to disguise her stats as well, much like Ainz when he was using Perfect Warrior. She was not as well versed in game mechanics as Ainz was, and found changing classes just for the sake of a disguise to be more of a hassle than anything.

This was because she was so used to using her current character from the first moment she played YGGDRASIL. Just like Ainz was well-versed in everything, she was the indisputable master of her unique playstyle.

Finishing up her disguise, Tiamat went down to the inn's lobby with her staff in hand, inwardly thankful the lobby was not as packed as last night, but already she could see some people who had already sat down turning their heads towards her direction.

She had never felt more uncomfortable.

Feeling the tension in the atmosphere, she heads towards the bar where the burly man from last night is standing.

"Good morning." she greeted him.

"Hn. I'm assuming you want breakfast?" he offered.

"No, that's alright. I'll be returning the keys for today." she slid the key of her room to the innkeeper and he took it in one swift motion.

But the innkeeper kept on staring at her.

"Is there something wrong?" she asks.

Something flashes through the innkeeper's eyes. "You've got guts, lil' lady. You didn't even come out of your room last night. You have no idea what happened huh?"

Tiamat forces herself to remain calm, despite the innkeeper's seemingly annoyed tone. "No, what happened last night?"

He let out a large sigh. "Another pretty lady with no brains…" he muttered. "Listen here lil' lady. Last night a bunch of Adventurers came to my inn causin' a ruckus. They wanted to recruit you. I knocked on your door last night but you didn't even answer. You have to realize that there are no Mythril adventurers who can survive out there on their own. You need to form a well balanced, strong team, or you're gonna die. You got that?"

Ah… turns out her silencing spell worked inside and outside the room huh? Good to know…

"Is that so?"

"Tch, whatever. You're on your own lil' lady."

Tiamat stepped towards the door, and was immediately bathed with appraising looks from everyone in the room-when suddenly someone grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her towards his direction.

The man in front of her was unarmored, his muscles visibly bulging under his clothes. On his neck was a necklace, a gold plate, which swayed with the man's movements.

"Pretty little thing ain't cha?" he spoke in a threatening manner with a sword in one hand. It gleamed as he clenches her wrist.

Although everyone seemed to focus more on their bland breakfast, it was obvious that they were looking forward to a good show, many of whom began to exchange coins betting on the outcome. But despite the growing tension in the air, neither the innkeeper or any of the other Adventurers stepped forward to stop it. They all sat there watching silently.

He was only slightly taller than her by an inch at most, and he glared at her with hateful eyes. Since he didn't say anything, Tiamat decided to speak.

"Excuse me, please let go of my hand."

A dangerous look crept into the man's eyes as he began to press harder. If she was just a normal human, the pressure he exerted would have definitely broken her wrist. As it was, she didn't even feel an ounce of pain because of her high defensive stat.

"I'd let go of you if you'd become my woman. Don't you know me? Me and my team are pretty famous. If you sleep with me for just a night. I'll let you join my team. How's that?"

"Fuu…" a small chuckle escaped her lips. She couldn't help it. This was like some cheesy romance drama where the heroine was attacked by the bad guy and the hero swoops in to save her. But that cheesy line had most definitely suited him.

"What? Do you think this is funny?" he raised her wrist high, as he keeps on inserting pressure into it. He had pressed so hard, but he hasn't heard the _crack_ that he is familiar with.

Tiamat just stared at him. This buffoon was nothing compared to the hardships she had experienced back on Earth. Moreover, she didn't want to cause anymore trouble, so she just replied to him in a steady voice.

"Nothing…" she stopped chuckling and looked him dead in the eye. Her amethyst gaze pierced his brown, and she deadpanned at him. "You sounded so pathetic, I couldn't help myself."

"Wha-?" the man's face flushed red.

To his shock, Tiamat swiftly threw the man with a flick of her wrist across the room.

The man couldn't even dodge, much less resist the sudden movement. He went "Uoh!" in surprise as he was thrown into the air, and let out a pained "Buagh!" when his back made an unpleasant 'crack' against the brick wall.

A wave of shock swept over the inn. She looked so dainty, yet was capable of throwing a full-grown man across the room. The other Adventurers who were watching started to debate in excitement. How strong could she be if she could launch that guy airborne with just her wrist? Their imaginations started to run wild and a heated debate grew within the lobby.

But she didn't pay attention to any of that.

The only thing she was thinking about was the guild rule. She had been briefed by the receptionist that friendly fire was prohibited among adventurers. Although the guy was the perpetrator, her high defense meant that there was no injury to her body. The one who caused the most injuries was Tiamat herself.

All in all, she'd be dead meat if this guy and his friends reported the incident to the guildmaster...

"It seems that I was too rough on him..." she kneeled to investigate the damage she has caused to the broken man. It hadn't even been a few hours since she had received her Mythril plate, and she had already caused trouble. She sighed, clearly disappointed by the turn of events which left much to be desired.

Despite the clear crack that currently marked the wall, the man's injuries were not so severe that she could not repair them. A mild concussion, possibly a shoulder sprain, a fractured spine, nothing too serious.

'_Okay, maybe I went a little too far_' Tiamat winced as she noticed the man's snapped spine.

Thankfully, this was a simple enough problem to solve, even taking into account the current paralysis of the man. She had caused the damage, so it was only fair that she should fix it. She began casting『Full Cure』. This spell would restore the target's HP to full as well as cure all debuff and status ailments, 『Light Heal』would most definitely have worked on his injuries, but she decided to cast a stronger healing spell just to be safe.

She didn't want him to report to Pluton Ainzach about this afterall, so a little bonus like this might serve as an incentive for him to remain quiet over the affair.

This simple action sparked the silent tavern into a wildfire of activity.

The man began to stir, and Tiamat held out her hand to help him stand. "You okay there?" she worriedly asked him.

"Uh...yeah." his ears reddened under her concerned gaze, and as he took her hand to get back up, he couldn't help but notice the softness of her hand.

Looking at her like this, with him below her had sparked an embarrassment that he had never felt before in his entire life, yet at the moment all he could think about was her hand, and her fingers in his palm. Every Adventurer or village women he knew were stiff because of manual labor and couldn't even be compared to the person in front of him.

He had imagined seducing this sinfully beautiful maiden. He had dreamed of holding her delicious curves in his arms, her body naked beneath his while he kissed those full lips and seeing her lovely face drowned in ecstasy. He had dreamed of taking her, filling her, and satiating himself with her. He had planned to have her at his mercy.

But now as he looked up at the radiant face of this maiden, no, _Goddess_, he could only weep at the thought that he had the _audacity_ to defile divinity itself.

"Are you really alright?" she placed her chilly palm onto his cheek, and he instantly jerked his head away. He didn't deserve such kindness from his Goddess after what he tried to do.

Because of such an unexpected action, his heart nearly burst through his chest and he screamed out of reflex.

"Y-Yes! I'm fine!"

"That's good then." her face lit up in relief, and when he looked at it, he knew he was in danger of losing his soul to this goddess, so innocent and bright.

He also knew that he didn't mind offering his soul up to such a deity. And so he began his ascent as the first among the zealots of the Dragon Goddess.

"You know, if you want to work together, you could just ask politely. You didn't have to go and be an asshole." his Goddess said crossly, and he bowed his head in shame. But upon hearing the rest of what she had to say, his head jolted up in surprise and his eyes wept in gratitude "Next time, if I get the chance, I would be happy to go on a quest with you and your team." his Goddess said with a bright smile.

He was in shock that his Goddess would forgive him so easily, and silently chastised himself for believing that the face of divinity could ever be petty.

"Sure!" she said happily. "Well, not right now. I have to go to the port for my first quest."

Immediately, his friends who were coming over when they saw him flying through the air rushed up to her and began to excitedly talk over one another. She struggled to pick out what they were saying and managed to hear one question in particular.

"Can we come with you?!"

Well, Tiamat thought she could somewhat understand. They wanted to work with someone who was able to tame a Dragon, especially one as titanic as ŇƗǤǤĦØǤ, since Dragons were apparently the strongest beings in this world.

The team consisted of five people, six including the man she had just thrown to the wall, Antonio Vallilis, she learned from his enthusiastic party members, and they all looked to be in their early thirties. Their armor appeared to be made from the same materials, mostly consisted of leather and iron. Their arms were muscular and their palms covered in calluses from wielding their swords.

A small gold plate hung around their chests, and shook mightily as they got more excited.

"I want to try my first quest by myself. Maybe we could go on one together afterwards?"

"Is that a promise?" one of them asked excitedly.

'_Cute._' was the only word that popped into her mind right now.

If she saw them back on Earth with their haggard appearance and scars, she would probably assume that they were part of the Yakuza. But right now, it was like she was looking at a bunch of puppies wagging their tail eagerly at her.

Perhaps this is what Yamaiko would call Gap-Moe?

Remembering her old friend, she wistfully smiled, and said. "Sure..." to which the team excitedly began fist-pumping to.

One of them took her hand, and shook it vigorously. "We'll be waiting here at the inn until you finished your quest. Just in case we aren't here, our team name is _Hissing Vipers_. " as they clumsily scribbled it down on a scrap of parchment

"Okay, well then. See you later?" she asked the group. They waved their goodbyes at her and with that she left the inn.

As soon as her shadow left the door, she could hear a deafening 'YOSHA!' which shook the entire inn. She could only chuckle light-heartedly. Were they really that happy to be working with her?

Nah, they just wanted her dragon, right?

o(；；)o

As soon as her shadow left the door, the buddies of Antonios, who Tiamat had thrown, rushed up to him and began hugging him in excitement. The inn which was previously silent exploded into a flurry of chatter.

"You did it man, you convinced her to join us for a quest!"

"Did you see that? Her arm strength was unbelievable!"

"Fuck! Dude, you guys are so lucky to get to hold her hand!"

"Lucky bastards. Next time we ain't gonna miss the chance to recruit her."

The scattered conversations around the inn were circling the one man who is just flabbergasted at what just happened.

"Did that really just happen?" Antonios asked himself, and perhaps his comrades.

Did his Goddess really agree to party with them, who were not even worthy to lick the soles of her shoes?

Ever since she arrived in this city, he knew that she was not an ordinary person.

Just by a glance, he knew that her impressive staff was not something that could be bought. Perhaps it was inherited from her predecessors, or found on a long-forgotten battlefield or ruin.

At first the Gold plated adventurer only wanted to measure her ability...and perhaps something else as well. He coughed and blushed at the thought of his recent blunder. Just like what they did with many other newcomers, because everyone in the guild were both comrades and competitors. But as it turned out, none of the new recruits could actually pass the test.

In other words, her sudden jump from Copper to Mythril was truly not something they could scoff at, and they knew if they were to have her as an ally, then they would have the backing of a being of unimaginable might.

A Dragon. And not just any ordinary dragon, but one that appeared to have burst straight from ancient myth; a being that rivaled the fabled Dragon Lords themselves.

"Now what about your injuries kid?" the innkeeper gruffly asked, pulling him out of his thoughts. "Did the lil' lady really patch you up?"

Antonios wanted to punch the innkeeper. How dare he imply that his Goddess would do something so contemptible? He was about to berate the innkeeper for his insult, but took a deep breath and calmed himself, for he knew the innkeeper was truly concerned for his well-being.

Antonios turned his neck and started to stretch his body. Nothing felt out of place. Even though he had hit that wall hard enough to leave a deep indentation in it, his body didn't feel any discomfort. In fact, he hadn't never felt this good in years.

So he tried to take a step, and he never thought that 'it' would happen.

His friends who were with him were so shocked that no words had come out of their gaping mouths.

That was because they had seen something that wasn't supposed to be there.

"That leg…"

Four years ago, he had lost his leg during a massive monster movement phenomenon called the Stampede that happened once every decade. When he came to, most of his friends had died and he had lost his leg along with his career as an Adventurer. Not even Lizzie Bareare, the best herbalist in the region could help him.

When he asked her if she could heal it, she had told him that the most potions could do was to heal lost fingers. But healing a lost limb was impossible.

Yet, he refused to give up. He went to the temple to see if they could succeed where the herbalist had failed, and his friends had helped him collect money for the treatment by doing all sorts of odd and menial jobs, hoping that they could once again go on adventures together.

The priests had rejected him at the door, saying that there was no magic accessible to mankind that could restore a lost limb. They could re-attach it if he still carried the limb with him, which was sadly eaten, but making something as complicated like an arm out of nothing was out of the question. According to them, only holy magic of the highest tier could undo such damage.

The problem was that no one in the Kingdom or the Empire was able to use holy magic better than the Slane Theocracy. There were only a few mages in the world, and from those mages, even fewer had an aptitude for the holy attribute. Moreover, the entry fee into the city was three times more expensive than getting healed at the temple.

After years of struggling to find a cure for his condition, he'd tiredly accepted his fate, and decided to continue becoming an adventurer with his friends until their dying days.

Yet here he was today, staring at the leg he never thought he would see again in disbelief.

His wooden prosthetic clattered to the floor, no longer attached to his thigh, and he hesitantly took a step forward. He only looked down, dumbfounded and slowly wiggled his toes.

"Oi, you alright?" his friend worriedly asked him, clearly concerned over Antonios's silence and all he got in reply was a joyful sob as tears started falling from his comrade's face.

"My leg, it's all healed..." he looked up and inwardly thanked the Goddess who had taken pity on him despite his foolishness.

Amidst all the mixed up emotions within the inn, a cloaked bystander who sat in the very corner excused himself from his acquaintances and went out.

As the maiden left to go to Re-Estize Kingdom on her very first quest, a rumor slowly spilled onto the streets of E-Rantel.

A rumor that a Holy Saint had finally descended upon the world, and that she was accompanied by her Goddess's most favored creation. A white Dragon.

o(；；)o

The Re-Estize Kingdom was located west of the Azerlisia Mountains, north-west of Nazarick, and was a reasonable distance from E-Rantel, especially if she flew over. Within half an hour, she arrived at the capital city of Re-Estize Kingdom, and looked down at the city from Pentakrisis.

Tall buildings towered over the center of the city, and as she looked further out, the quality of the place gradually dwindled down. There was a massive difference between the rich and the poor, and this place reminded her of the medieval era back on Earth.

'_As well as the modern era._' she quietly thought to herself.

She forced the gradually darkening train of thought to a halt. She didn't have time for sightseeing. All that was important right now was finishing this quest before Ainz arrived.

Now that she had a map of the kingdom, she could use 『Gate』to travel wherever she desired, just in case something happened. But this time, she landed just outside the gates of the Re-Estize Kingdom.

Pentakrisis definitely caused a mini-panic, but as soon as she showed the guards that she was a certified Adventurer from E-Rantel, along with her quest parchment, she was finally allowed passage inside the Kingdom. After that small spectacle she decided to hide in a small alley to teleport towards the western part of Re-Estize Kingdom.

When she arrived, the first thing she did was to inhale the new scent surrounding her. The sublime smell of salt against the wind. She ran excitedly towards the port and could only widen her eyes in awe.

The scene in front of her looked like it came straight out of a painting.

The water mirrored the blue sky, and the sun shone over the horizon that separated land from sea. She had never seen such a large body of water in one area before. A ship was sailing into the distance and disappeared over the horizon.

The view would have been much more superb if she flew above the sea with Pentakrisis. But if she did so she would inevitably cause another mass panic. Seriously, the people here were scared of nearly everything …

Anyways, she had a quest to finish.

She walked down to the port, and the hustle around her seemed to amplify the atmosphere of the place. It was most definitely a welcome change compared to the Fortress City, but still fell short of Nazarick afterall. Should she convince Ainz to create a new floor within the Great Tomb? A floor with a beach perhaps? Perhaps she could make that her reward for winning the bet.

There were several shops open for business. Most sold fish and various other fishing and sailing goods, while to her side were several restaurants where the people in aprons bustled around carrying goods.

In this densely populated commercial district, she had to look for a ship by inspecting a picture on the quest parchment. Finding it was probably going to take a few minutes, since there were so many ships lined up at the port.

Before long, she finally found the ship that she was looking for.

Looking up at the imposing mast, she should've guessed that a client rich enough to afford a Mythril plate adventurer would definitely own the largest ship at the port. One sailor, she assumed he was a sailor because he was carrying crates into the ship, had put down the box he was carrying and looked over in her direction.

"Good afternoon." she warmly greeted him.

"A-ah, yes."

"Is this Captain Barbbossa's ship?" she asked the young sailor.

"Y-yes!"

"Do you work for him?"

He nods.

"Is he here?" she took a step closer towards the boy.

He nods, his face flushed red like a boiled crab, and dashes inside the ship.

Did he want her to follow him?

Slightly shaking her head, she took her first step towards the raised platform of the ship and saw the sailor waiting for her.

The deck of the ship was just as grand as its exterior. Surely a ship of this size would definitely require a plethora of people to manage it. But as she looked around she saw not a single soul, and her ears couldn't pick out any signs of life either. It was almost as if the Captain and the sailor were the only two people on the ship. Three with her included.

The sailor lead her to the office right on the deck, where a well-groomed man she assumed was Captain Barbbossa sat.

She had expected someone with a fancy hat and a massive white beard like in some of the movies she had used to watch, but to her surprise, the Captain appeared to be relatively young, in his mid thirties at the most.

"Are you here for the quest?" he asked her hastily.

Tiamat immediately answered. "Yes." from the Captain's tone, she understood that if there is no time for idle chat, then the situation must be gravely serious.

The so called _Curse of the Sea_.

"Please follow me." He demanded, to which she complied.

They exited the Captain's office, the boy hurriedly tagging along. The Captain led her down into the city and away from the port.

"What can you tell me about the curse, Captain?" She asked, legitimately curious of the nature of this quest.

After a brief period of silence, the Captain replied. "Actually, I've submitted the quest to the Adventurers' Guild for years now and every time, all they did was recommend me to the temple to get my crew healed. But that's not what I want." He explained.

"As the quest stated, I came here to purify the curse." She replied kindly.

"As did many others before you." He stopped to look right into her eyes. From his facial expression, it doesn't seem like he handled the repeated failures of her predecessor's very well.

His words left much to be desired, but she knew one thing for sure. No one had been able to dispel a curse of this magnitude before.

This was seriously intriguing. She felt like she was in some sort of game world right now, taking on a quest to solve an unknown curse. How exciting!

'_Well, this world is somehow equivalent to a game world right now._' she thinks wryly to herself.

But she had to remain calm and maintain professionalism. She couldn't afford to make any mistakes due to excitement right now. The client might take it the wrong way.

"What can you tell me about the curse?" She repeated her question, staring back at the Captain, her gaze undeterred.

The Captain could see the determination in her eyes. He nodded and continued leading the way. "You're not from here, are you? The curse is fairly famous among sailors. Us sailors, we can't make long distance travels because of this curse."

"Why is that?"

He began to tell her about the ominous curse that eradicated the sailors at sea. "If we were on the sea for more than three months, the sailors gradually began to display signs of the curse. For each person the curse differs. For some, they will bleed even though they are not injured. Some begin to experience seizures or have their old wounds reopened. Some hallucinate. But the most common sign of the curse is that their teeth fall out." He mentioned eerily.

Eh?

She stopped in her tracks.

Haha, There was no way right?

"The journey at sea has always been considerably difficult, but there usually isn't much damage to the ship itself. This is the curse; those who stay at sea will be cursed to death by an invisible force. We're here." said the Captain.

They stood in front of the temple. The architecture was similar to the Parthenon temple she had once seen in a history book with its towering columns. The Captain led her into the room where the surviving sailors were being treated.

As she walked past the doorway, she stumbled as the putrid odor assaulted her nose.

Even though it was a temple used as a contemporary hospital, the place was a hygienic nightmare.

The patients all slept on the floor due to the lack of room. The unwashed blankets and pillows were slowly turning a sickly yellow-brown in color. Blood and dirty gauze was laid unwashed, creating a fishy and rotten smell that permeated the air. It smelled like Death.

The smell was so pungent that Tiamat had to cover her nose with her hand.

"This is the result of the curse." Captain Barbbossa pointed to her. "These are all members of my crew. Even though they've been healed by the temple, the curse still brings most sailors to the brink of death. Please purify the curse of the sea!" He pleaded.

She had an idea regarding the nature of the curse as she mulled over all the possibilities in her head. The symptoms of the curse had sounded familiar, but she had to make sure.

"Am I allowed to examine your crew?"

"Please…"

She nodded, and she immediately went to the patient closest to her.

Bruised skin like that of an overripe fruit. Skin dried into a crust of dirty brown. A burning fever despite the ice bag placed on his forehead. She ran her hand through his hand and came away with a handful of dried up. But the next part was the most important in confirming her suspicions.

"Excuse me." She opened his lips wide to look at his gum.

"W-wait what are you doing?" Screamed the Captain. "I ask you to purify the curse of the sea! Not to heal my crew, the temple can do that for me!"

"I'm sorry, but this is necessary." She patiently explained. It was indeed necessary. The most important part even.

She looked back to the man's teeth, her eyes filled with disgust. Each tooth was rotting and barely hanging on to the man's gums. But this was the most vital piece of information. Inflamed gums.

Tiamat was in shock. Her lips thinned in disappointment and the eagerness from her eyes thought the curse would be something fantastical, like the song of the sirens, or the vengeance of some water spirit, but never in her wildest dreams did she expect it to be something as ordinary as this.

She proceeded to inspect the next patient. After she finished, she moved on to the next person, and continued to do so until she cleared the entire room.

The Captain could see her face slowly shift from a detached kindness into a dark scowl as she reached the last person in the room. Her bright eyes struck him with a sense of foreboding, but he didn't know from what.

Once she had finished, she headed back to the door where he stood. "You want me to purify the curse right?"

The Captain nodded. '_Finally!_' He thought to himself. "Yes."

"Did you bring any money with you?"

"Money? Ah, yes…"

"In that case, follow me." She leads the way this time. But he noticed that they were not going in the direction of the port. They were going further into the heart of the city.

"Where are we going?" The Captain asked, but the girl didn't bother to respond to his question.

Instead she asked the Captain one question. "What are the provisions like on your ship?"

The Captain's mouth opens wide in surprise. The question didn't seem to address the purification of his crew, but surely there was no harm in answering her question. Afterall, most sailors ate the same thing.

"For our long journeys, it's a stretch to say that we have an abundance of food, but we carry enough to avoid starvation. Our diet consists mostly of fish, biscuits, cheese, and rum."

"Food that can stay over long period of time, huh?"

"That is indeed the case. Sometimes, we stop at ports along our route. There are some small islands, southwest of the mainland, but anchoring near those islands without express permission may bring unnecessary trouble."

"What about you Captain?" she stopped in her tracks and turned towards him. This time she's the one giving him a hardened frown. "To be perfectly honest, there are irregularities in your stories. You say that you've submitted the quest for years now, yet somehow you yourself are unaffected by this curse. Why is that?"

The Captain started to pick up on what she was implying.

"How did you..."

He immediately noticed his blunder and shut his mouth, but it was too late. Her sharp eyes were already trained on him.

Suddenly, his throat felt unbearably dry. There were a thousand thoughts racing through his mind. What should he tell her? How much should he reveal? How should he prove his claims? He tried to make excuses, but when he looked up at the maiden in front of him, he knew that there were no excuses he could make that would allow him to escape that piercing gaze.

With a bit of desperation creeping into his voice, he said, "I obtained freezing scrolls years ago. As you might already know, a low-tier freezing scroll could be used to freeze one small area for a period of time. I kept a small crate in my office filled with fresh vegetables, meat and high quality wine, and the freezing scroll would keep the crate cold for months, which helped preserve the vegetables and meat on long trips. Everytime we dock at a port I replenish my own food and scroll supply while my crew eat from their provisions."

"I knew it…" she whispered to herself. That was the big difference between the Captain and his crew.

"I know it's wrong of me to do so, but old habits die hard. Once I got used to eating fresh meat and vegetables, I couldn't go back to the old provisions anymore. Perhaps, you could figure out something?"

Unknown to the Captain, his eyes shone bright with greed, and Tiamat had a nagging sensation in her gut that he was expecting something from her.

"Well, I believe I have the solution for this problem."

"Huh?" the Captain's surprised exclamation almost turned everyone's head to their direction.

"The curse is not a curse." she stated matter-of-factly, "It's a disease. A deadly one at that."

"A disease? But a disease would have to be directly be transmitted from one person to another, yet everyone displayed different symptoms. Moreover, none of those symptoms have afflicted the citizens of the Kingdom, which includes those who buried the bodies and the healers at the temple."

"Yes, you're right. But not all diseases are transmittable by nature. In this case, the main cause of their disease lies in their diet." she continued walking.

"Their diet?" the Captain repeated in surprise.

"When a ship is sailing for a long time, it is understandable to not have a variety of food at hand. Fresh meat and vegetables rot when they are not quickly consumed. That's why there was no choice for you but to depend on food that would last throughout the entirety of your journey. Good thinking on your part for using a freezing scroll, but sadly, you decided to selfishly use it for yourself." she sighed, scowling in disappointment. "Did you really think this kind of diet would be healthy for anybody?"

"I understand well enough how important it is to eat good food. However, it is difficult to believe that a healthy man would suddenly keel over from a limited diet. Are you sure this is the cause of the disease?"

Well, Tiamat was half-expecting that sort of reaction from the Captain. Most people knew that you would die if you didn't eat, but few knew that more people died from what they put in their mouths than the lack of food altogether.

"Think of it like this, Captain." she began to explain. "What materials do you usually use when you're building a ship?"

Still following her, the Captain was bewildered by the abrupt change in topic. Head tilted to the side in confusion, he answered, "First, you need a circular hull to store large quantities of cargo. The vessel itself must built from the keep up. A thick wooden skeleton would keep the ship's hull in place. The hull would then be lined with overlapping planks that would held in place with brass fastenings. The planks that make up the bow and stern planks are rather long, connecting the ship to the keep. Lastly, to make the ship waterproof, tarred moss is applied over the curved grooves."

"Right, so mainly wood, brass nails, and tarred moss. Then what happens if you're missing one of these materials?"

"Having no wood is out of the question, and without brass nails you can't keep the wood in place. The ship could still be built without tarred moss, but it would most definitely sink, which would make it useless."

"Similarly, the human body is like a ship, though much more complicated. If the body doesn't receive the materials it needs in its diet, the human body, the ship, will become fragile. In short, this disease is simply the case of malnutrition."

The curse was not a curse. It was scurvy. The result of vitamin C deficiency which could lead to anemia, debility, exhaustion, spontaneous bleeding, pain in the limbs, swelling in the joints, and ulceration of the gums followed by the loss of teeth.

A disease that was most often associated with sailors back in the 15th century on Earth, when long sea voyages made it hard to get a steady supply of fresh produce. Countless sailors had fallen to victim to the vicious disease.

A similar situation had also occurred during the Irish potato famine of 1845 and the American Civil War. The last she had heard about the disease was from the outbreak during the Arcology War, where countless people died from lack of proper nutrition.

She should have known. The New World didn't have a clue regarding the concepts of a proper diet or nutrition. It was frustrating to be forced to explain things without using modern words.

The Captain appeared to be deep in thought. He was silent, but his eyes were clearly fixated on her back. It seemed like he was looking straight through her, so she disregarded it and forced herself to endure.

'_Remember Tiamat. This is an A-ranked quest. You're dealing with a veeery important client._' she thought to herself.

In spite of her efforts to encourage herself, she couldn't escape the waves of disappointment that roiled through her emotions. She had truly and honestly thought she was going to encounter a curse. Something new, something exciting, a new piece of information that Ainz would most definitely have been unable to obtain but through her.

She sighed upon thinking about how the quest turned out.

"I understand."

"Huh?" she lifted her head in surprise.

The solemn expression he'd been wearing the entire time disappeared as he finally smiled. "I believe you."

"Eh?"

"I didn't really understand your whole explanation, but I do know that you were being honest. So I'm just going to take a leap of faith, since I currently don't have the time to be idling around. Right now, you're the only one whose provided an option at all, and I'm willing to take my chances. Besides, somehow, there's a part of me that can't help but believe you."

"Okay…"

"Forgive me for being too forward in asking this, but do you know how to eradicate this disease?"

She nodded with the utmost seriousness. "This is why I'm taking you to the market. There are some ingredients we need to buy."

"In that case, I shall purchase the required items post-haste."

To take preventative measures against scurvy, she introduced the Captain to _sauerkraut_ and _pickles_. Sauerkraut is a fermented cabbage used frequently as garnish in Germany, while pickles are pickled cucumbers, famous in the United States and Canada.

As soon as they bought all the necessary ingredients, they rushed back to the ship and she immediately went to work. He had eagerly asked her what ingredients she needed, causing her to feel a little sorry for him when she told him that all she needed were a few vegetables, salt, vinegar, and sugar.

First came the sauerkraut. Using a small knife she borrowed from the Captain, she removed the core of the cabbage, shredding it into pieces, and dashed each leaf with salt. Then she let it sit until all the water from the cabbage had come out and transferred those juices and the cabbage into a container which she had disinfected with hot water.

Next she had to prepare the pickles. She sliced the cucumbers into quarters with precise vertical slices. Then she made the brine by mixing together water, vinegar, salt, and sugar, until all the salt and sugar had dissolved, and then added the cucumber and brine into another disinfected jar.

"All you need to do after this is to place it in a cool area where the sun can't reach it for a week, allowing the vegetables to ferment." she told the Captain upon finishing the preparations.

Wiping her hand with a towel, she looked at the Captain and the boy who were taking notes. He held his chin in his hand and frequently glanced at the incomplete product.

"It's surprisingly simple."

"Were you disappointed?" she smiled at him, and as if compelled, the same smile crept across his face.

"A little bit. However, with so few ingredients and time, producing it in large batches will be easy. What comes next is figuring out how to distribute it."

At his words, she hesitated. "Do you know a merchant?"

"Captain may be my title, but I'm more of a merchant than anything."

"Is that so? In that case, I have a request."

The Captain's eyes jolted wide open, but quickly narrowed, carrying an edge of seriousness. Wordlessly, he urged her on.

"I want you to handle this as one of your products."

His lips thinned and he furrowed his eyebrows, clearly surprised by her request.

"You know, if handled correctly, this product could yield a fortune, and that of course would be very convenient for me. Are you sure?"

"I'm an adventurer, Captain. Let's say I tried to teach every sailor I met how to make this; I doubt I would even find one who would trust me. They would either think that it's too good to be true, or that I'm trying to swindle them."

Such a conclusion was obvious on her part. Afterall, there was no such thing as a free meal. A lot of people would be suspicious if you were offered something free of charge. In fact, she would be a bit worried if someone had accepted her proposal without reservations.

To get the job done, and in order to truly eradicate the disease, she had to turn to one who knew about the business inside and out. Luckily, her quest had provided her with such a person.

"I'm sure a trustworthy Captain of your caliber, with your wide connections and many customers, would do the job well."

"You honor me far too much."

"With that being said, I have two conditions that I'd like to set."

"Conditions?" he asked.

"First, if you are planning on selling them, then I want you to set the price low. Of course, I'm not so stupid as to ask you to set the price so low that you're unable to make a profit, but at the very least, I want you to keep the cost as low as possible."

She was aware of just how selfish her request was. The product was original and would certainly become a necessity for any crew making long voyages. There was no doubt in her mind that it would sell well.

Right now she felt like she dangling a hunk of meat before a large shark, while wiggling the meat around and teasing the shark until it snapped and devoured her.

She had prepared the products in front of him, yet told him not to capitalize it. She could only imagine the business deals and negotiations he would have to deal with in the future because of this.

Regardless, there was no change in his expression. Ever since she came up with a solution his face remained tranquil, content even, which made it far more difficult for Tiamat to read his mood. Was he angry? Disappointed? Well, no matter. Afterall, there was another bomb she had to toss at him.

"What about your other condition?" he asked.

"I want the recipe written on parchment and attached to the jar so that everyone can make it."

It was likely for Captain Barbbossa to have accepted her first condition if he had no qualms with small profits and quick returns. High demand would eventually yield high result. Moreover, he would have a monopoly over the product. If he was as capable as she thought he was, he would definitely rake in a large profit.

But the second condition overturned all of that.

She was literally asking him to release his monopoly over the product and throw away the profits he could have made.

"Hoo…" it was clearly directed towards himself more than her.

She continued smiling. "What do you think?"

"You know, I have worked in restaurants before. Usually, they devoted a lot of time and care into what they have made. But you didn't do that. You made the most basic version so that anyone can make it." he smiled a little, as if to say 'Am I right?'

Now that they were on the same page, her smile widened and she nodded in affirmation. "You're not refusing?"

"Ha! I'm no saint, but I'm not such an idiot that I'd have no interest in the gem placed before me."

"Then you agree?"

He then suddenly laughed. He laughed so hard that his whole body shook. There were only two thoughts that went through her mind at the time. Whether she had made the Captain angry, or she had deeply troubled him.

"How cunning of you to make them in front of me and then telling me about your conditions afterwards. If you wanted me to accept your conditions, that recipe was the trump card you should've held on to until the very end."

Damn, he'd hit her right where it hurts. "You're not wrong." she conceded. "In fact, if you refused, I would have let you do as you pleased."

"What?" he was clearly dumbfounded by her reply.

"As I told you before. I am nothing but an Adventurer. You're a merchant. If the product is under your care, then nothing would possibly go wrong and it would reach nations further than I could have ever imagined. If you refused, then I would have gone back to E-Rantel to fix the quest, because in the end, there is no such thing called the curse of the sea."

Roughly speaking, she was leaving things entirely in his hand.

"I'm sorry for being so cunning." she smiled feebly, in response to the Captain's astonished face.

"You keep on surprising me…"

She just stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

"When you first came, I was really surprised. I asked myself, what could someone as young as you do to break the curse. A lone Mythril adventurer is simply unheard of. But as the day progressed, I noticed that even though you have reached Mythril at such a young age, you are not arrogant. Even with all that knowledge, you don't put yourself first." he stated.

She said nothing.

"You are correct. On a long trip by ship, food problems cannot be easily overlooked. The masses would've been suspicious if it had been marketed as a magical product, but a long lasting product is a different story. Even if the very idea of purifying the curse is a lie, it would be no great loss. Moreover the price is cheap and even the poor can buy it. Once again, I am filled with the highest regard for you. You are a tremendously incredible young lady." he looked at her with a straight back. "I accept your conditions."

On that day, another miracle had descended upon the world. It seemed that a solution to the dreaded curse of the sea had been discovered. A merchant had distributed the products over the market along with instructions detailing how to make it stuck on each and every product. Delicious in its simplicity.

Furthermore, it came with the blessing of a Goddess. The product was especially popular among the seafarers. The trade name was 'Tears of the Sea', from how the item was so salty it would make even the most hardened of sailors cry. It was said that the one benevolent enough to create such a miracle was a certain silver hair Priestess that had visited the port once upon a time.

o(；；)o

Today had been a long day indeed. Her first A-ranked quest had taken a few hours at the longest. If she wanted to rise faster than Ainz, then she needed to do better than this.

She wanted to return to E-Rantel as soon as possible, but first of all, there was one thing she had to handle before she could leave.

Two men in particular had been following her.

One when she was in E-Rantel, and another one in the Kingdom.

'_What to do, what to do…_' she idley thought to herself.

Currently, she was pretending to be sightseeing around the Kingdom. She could feel the man following her ever since she got down from Captain Barbbossa's ship.

Whether both of the people who followed her worked together or not, she had no idea. There was no way word of her arrival would travel from E-Rantel to the Kingdom within one day. It took far longer than a measly twenty four hours to travel on land between both places, and to arrange such a journey would take time as well, since you have to find the right person.

Most likely, the person following her is from E-Rantel and knew that she was going to the Kingdom for her first quest, which would explain why he was already here. Perhaps he knew from the moment she received her first quest.

Meaning the person who followed her was someone related to the Adventurers' Guild. Someone who knew who took what quest. Was it the receptionist? Was she selling information to other people?

Well, she had no way of knowing unless…

Which decision would be the most fun? Ah, decisions, decisions

Should she play around a little bit with the guy? Maybe she could get an idea of what his motives were.

If Ainz was with her, he would most definitely have avoided this situation.

Someday her curiosity would end up to be the end of her. Especially if she wasn't careful.

She looked at one of the invisible Eight-Edged Assassins who was scaling the wall. For her protection, Ainz had recommended her to take a team of invisible assassins with her just in case. She had balked at the idea when it was initially proposed, but she was glad she had decided to have followed his advice.

She smiled brightly to herself. Since the quest had been boring, she should have some fun on her own, right?

Using her skill 『Automatic Mapping』, she found the nearest alley with a dead end, and when she reached it, still under the pretense of sight-seeing, she innocently walked into the alleyway.

Not wanting to lose her from his sight, her stalker followed her into the alleyway. Preparing the syringe in his hand, as requested by his employer, he poked his head to the side and saw the Priestess's back, still cluelessly looking at the building designs of the Kingdom.

He looked left and right. No one was in sight. He took a deep breath. He could do this. She's just a lone woman. He was a trained specialist. Her dragon wasn't even here to protect her.

He whispered one of his martial art skills『Flow Acceleration』and hoped for the best as he began to pounce. Within mere seconds, his syringe was about to reach her neck, but was blocked by something invisible, something like...a force field?

Somehow he was thrown aside by something, and he lost his grip on the syringe which fell onto the ground.

"Well, well, well… what have we got here?"

Busted! He tried to run away from her. Suddenly the only exit out of the alley was blocked by a spider like abomination with eight razor sharp legs. Startled, he tried to scream. But just as he was about to draw his first breath, it hitched in his throat. Then he fell down onto the ground with a dull thud. His ears were ringing and his head felt heavy.

"Ah...I...too hard...alive?" was the only thing he could hear.

But one thing was clear. Behind her, a swirling red portal opened, seemingly cutting through the fabric of reality, and with that he closed his eyes, knowing that he had failed.

"Shall I kill him, My Lady?" asked the bizarre spider-like creature.

Tiamat picked up the syringe from the pavement. The first thing she did was to smell it. A sickly sweet smell. Sweet to the point that it was overbearing. What was it? And why did he try to inject her with it? Perhaps it was a sedative of some sort?

"No." she decided. "Bring him to Neuronist to be interrogated. Tell Demiurge to oversee the interrogation as well."

"As you wish." the spider then dragged the unconscious man through the portal, and the portal finally closes.

She walked out of the alley with a slight spring in her steps and once she went outside the gates of the Kingdom, she went to a secluded nearby forest and whistled. At her call, Pentakrisis landed gently, or as gently as he could, in front of her. He lowered his wings so that Tiamat could climb up his back.

"Shall we go back and continue questing?" she asked Pentakrisis, to which he happily nodded in agreement. He had really enjoyed this simple outing with his creator, and would do anything he could to prolong it.


	10. CHAPTER 10: Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

**CHAPTER 10: Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!**

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**A/N: We'll be gradually reuploading previous chapters over the next few weeks in order to polish up the writing. **

**This story have reached 100 reviews! What a milestone! Thank you to everyone who supported this story. I really appreciate it. All in all, I know that it's impossible to satisfy each and every one of the readers, but I write to have fun and because I enjoy it. I hope you have fun reading as much as me and _hackslashbash_ have fun writing them. If you don't like this fanfiction, there are other stories much more glorious and magnificent than this one. Or if you're not satisfied, you can write your own. Once again, thank you for all the love and support. As of today, 6th June, 2019, Tiamat; The Goddess of Dragons have received 106 reviews, 188 favorites, 231 followers, and 2 communities. To end this author note, I wanted to say, there is no such thing as a small achievement. An achievement is still an achievement no matter how small, and I'm happy that we have come this far.**

**WARNING: This chapter contain torture scene. You have been warned.**

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_Always believe in yourself and always stretch yourself beyond your limits. Your life is worth a lot more than you think because you are capable of accomplishing more than you know. You have more potential than you think, but you will never know your full potential unless you keep challenging yourself and pushing beyond your own self imposed limits. - Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart_

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The sun shone high above the blue sky when she returned to E-Rantel. As Pentakrisis slowly landed in a spiral descent just outside the gate, she saw the lookouts who were guarding the gate trembling in their shoes.

Well she supposed she could somewhat understand.

Pentakrisis lowered his head so that she could climb down safely, and once back on solid ground, Tiamat lovingly rubbed his forehead. Pentakrisis purred in satisfaction. It sounded more like a low-magnitude earthquake than a purr, but anyone could tell that the dragon was clearly happy with the simple act of affection.

He leaned his house sized head into her laughably small hands by comparison, nearly bulldozing her away with his sheer weight, as he begged for more attention.

"Awww, you're so cute Pentakrisis!" she couldn't help giggling. All of her dragons were cute in her opinion. They may have looked like fearsome meat shredders with their rugged scales and jaws full of teeth, but their behaviour towards her reminded her of a cat begging for attention.

She hoped she could finish this bet as planned. She missed her baby dragons, and from her mental link she knew that they missed her too. They had been calling out for her, desperately craving her attention. Moreover, she missed the Floor Guardians. She couldn't wait until she could finally return to Nazarick.

Pentakrisis was linked to her mind as well, and since he was obviously much more mature than the baby dragons, he had been reigning her babies in and kept from being too noisy by telling them of their journeys while they were fast asleep, sending mental images in their dreams about the outside world. But Tiamat had looked at things differently. She knew that Pentakrisis had definitely been bragging.

_'The humans are weak moreover, they continue yapping like insects. It's ridiculously annoying. Next time when you see them, you can definitely eat them. Plus, look at this view!'_ Yup, Pentakrisis was definitely bragging as he smugly showed them the wonderful vistas of the New World.

Crystal clear skies, rolling green hills, and towering snow-capped mountains was shown to the triplets.

Then the baby dragons chirped in dissatisfaction. They were not old enough to be able to effectively communicate through the mental link yet, but from the sound of their cries she had understood that they were jealous of her and Pentakrisis's outings.

Without Pentakrisis regulating the mental link channel, she knew it would filled with her babies telling her they wanted to go out and have fun with her too.

_'I'm sorry my cute babies…'_ she had apologized before leaving them with Aura. She trusted the dark elf would spare no effort in taking good care of them.

The guards who looked at this bizarre spectacle could only think of one thing. They all looked at each other and nodded in agreement. One look into each other's eyes and they knew they were all thinking of the same thing.

_'She's crazy!'_

Look at the beast's teeth! It looked like it could rip her apart in seconds! Those sharp claws could definitely easily rip her in half! Even when the dragon leaned in for a little bit, she had clearly stumbled because of its weight. Just the thought of being close to the predator and imagining all the horrible things it could do made their teeth clatter in sheer terror.

How she could she still think that the creature towering over them was cute was beyond their imagination.

"I'll see you tomorrow…" she whispered to Pentakrisis, and he nodded. He unfolded his wings and flew away, leaving behind a strong gust of wind as he faded into the distance. Tiamat waited until he had completely disappeared from view, and then made her way to the city gates.

"Good afternoon." she pleasantly greeted the guards. The guards immediately straightened up and nodded to her in return, moving to the side to let her in.

Since she had some free time, she decided to fulfill her promise from earlier that morning, and immediately headed straight for the inn. Since it was still noon, the inn was much emptier than it was the morning she was there. Perhaps it was the best time for the adventurers to go on quests since it was still bright out.

Her eyes landed on the single team in the inn who were all huddled together at one table: The Hissing Vipers. Right as she opened the door, all of them shot up to their feet. One person in particular had been faster than the other.

Antonios Vallilis.

"Hannah-sama, you're here!" he stood up faster than the others and bowed towards her at an impressive angle as soon as she walked through the door.

He had bent down so low that his head almost touched the floor, making Tiamat wonder in amazement.

_'Wow, I didn't know the human body could bend that far.' _Tiamat observed.

She hasn't tested her new body's flexibility yet since she focused more on her skills and abilities, as well as making sure that the oven in Nazarick worked. Had to keep that supply of cheese cake running. But she knew for sure that she didn't have the flexibility that guy had when she was on Earth.

She wasn't sure if she had heard him correctly. _'...sama?'_ she thought to herself. His behaviour was weirding her out. A complete one-eighty from this morning. Did she hit him harder than she had previously thought? Or perhaps her 『Full Cure』had been ineffective? But she was so sure that she had healed all the damage she had caused him and more.

"That was fast!" one of them excitedly said. "Usually a quest takes about a day to finish. Could you tell us the rank of your quest?"

"Oi Borg, stop being rude! Of course that quest had been easy for someone of Hannah-sama's caliber!" Antonios chided Borg, causing the group to bicker amongst themselves.

Yup, her ears were perfectly fine. From the moment she'd arrived he had addressed her with the suffix sama. He reminded her of the Floor Guardians and Yuri, but without the same likeability.

In all honesty, she had felt uncomfortable around him ever since he tried to force her to join his group. Just this morning he had acted all haughty and prideful, and now he was worshipping the ground she walked on. This caused her to be wary of him.

"Er…" she tried to catch the group attention. "Antonios-san was it?"

The man's face shifted into a strange combination of shock and elation, obviously surprised that his name came out from her lips. "You remembered my name?"

"Ah, isn't that a given? We met this morning afterall. Also, Antonios-san, you don't have to be so polite with me." the man looked absolutely horrified by her suggestion, as if she had told him to kill his own family. But she didn't pay him any attention as she shifted her body to look at the other guy. "Borg-san was it? My quest was an A-ranked quest. There weren't any monsters and it was a lot easier than I had previously thought, so I returned earlier than expected."

The rest of the group looked at her in awe, their jaws gaping wide open, astounded by her comment. Even the innkeeper suddenly turned around towards their direction. Perhaps her comment had been offensive somehow?

"D-did I say something wrong?" she asked them. If she did then she had to properly apologize. She was really bad at this whole making new connections thing.

Making personal connections was absolutely imperative in every career, especially one as dangerous as an adventurer. To become an Adamantine adventurer, you couldn't just be good at what you did, or in her case, effectively completing her quests. Personal relationships with both clients and your co-workers were critical to completing objectives a single person could not handle, and especially so if the client asked her to work together with other teams in the future. That the only reason why she had agreed on questing together in the first place.

"That's crazy." her sensitive ears picked the quiet muttering of one person who is sitting in the back.

She was beginning to feel alarmed by the confusing turn of events. "What is it?" she asked no one in particular.

"I-If I may ask, what were you asked to do in the quest?" Borg asked her back.

Before she began to say anything, she remembered the guild rules from her last briefing with the receptionist. Upon reviewing her memories she found no rule that stated that the quest had to be confidential between Adventurers, and now that she had finished her quest, she guessed that as long as she didn't mention her client's personal information, it was alright for her to share the details of her quest.

"It was about the Curse of the Sea." she softly explained.

"T-the Curse of the Sea!"

"She said it was easy!"

"There's no way! That's a dead quest. No one had been able to successfully complete that quest for years!"

Suddenly amidst all the ruckus, Antonios started to chuckle. At first it was low and quiet but it gradually grew louder and louder. "I should've known! As expected of the Goddess herself!"

"You flatter me, Antonios-san, but I'm just a regular Priestess."

_'Yeah right, like we would believe that! Since the beginning there was nothing regular about this person!' _Was the thought that ran across the whole inn

"Humble, capable, and beautiful as well! You continue to baffle me Hannah-sama."

At that point, Tiamat decided that the guy was mentally deranged. Humble? That was because she had nothing worth being proud of. Capable? All she really did was teach someone how to make pickles. Beautiful? That was because she designed her character to look visually appealing. All in all, she had achieved nothing that truly made her proud.

_'Beautiful, huh…'_ that statement lingered in her head for a while. _'If they had seen what I truly look like, would they still call me beautiful?'_ she scoffed to herself. She already knew the answer.

_'There's no way.'_ she laughed inwardly. Even she herself didn't find herself appealing.

But to have been called beautiful when her appearance wasn't even her own had truly hurt. She had felt like she had stolen someone else's identity. She knew that she wasn't supposed to be treated like this, and it made her feel guilty.

"So, should we go on that quest I promised you?" she tried to change the topic before her good mood was ruined by her thoughts.

One of them cautiously stepped towards her, "Is it alright?" he asked tentatively.

He knew that he and his team were thinking the same thing. Years of working together until they reached Gold rank had forged a bond stronger than steel. They could communicate with the slightest of gestures. They were more than just comrades. They were family.

Right now they were all thinking of the same thing. They had felt that she might turn them away since the quest they had picked was easy. A group of Barghests had been attacking Adventurers collecting herbs in the forest, and the quest asked for someone to subjugate them.

Tiamat sensed their discomfort. "Of course. I promised after all. Besides, it's much more fun to do quests together right?" she smiled sweetly at them.

_'An Angel!'_ they all thought in unison.

They expected her to be prideful and haughty. Most noble ladies that they had escorted didn't even bother to hold normal conversations with them. They had assumed that the girl in front of them would be cut from the same cloth.

Truly, you could not judge a book by its cover.

"Then shall we go?"

"HAI!"

(๑ ⌓ ๑)

It was settled.

Antonios Vallilis was insane.

When they went out to travel to the nearby forest, he had offered Tiamat to ride on his horse since she didn't have one. She has her dragons afterall. Moreover, she had never ridden a horse before.

As soon as Tiamat brought this problem up to the Hissing Vipers, Antonios had immediately offered his horse for her to ride.

She had argued that she'd walk, but he insisted.

To any other person who was watching, they would all draw the same conclusion.

The girl was being escorted by a bunch of Adventurers.

She was positioned exactly in the middle, in between the Hissing Viper members, and instead of riding the horse together with her, Antonios had settled on walking and guiding the horse since Tiamat didn't have any horseback riding experience.

At first, she had assumed that it would be the same as riding a dragon. But it felt...weirdly unstable.

The rest of the team cackled at their best friend's change of attitude.

Well, they could understand why he put her on such a high pedestal. She had restored his leg, and with it, his hopes for the future. So they let him be.

To be perfectly honest, the entire thing had made her terribly uncomfortable. He was acting way too formal around her. Even the Floor Guardians didn't act this extreme. She had no clue how to deal with him, so she just let him be. If he tried to do anything questionable, then Tiamat would do more than just snap his spine in half.

But for now, she would do nothing. After all, he wasn't really doing her any real harm.

"We're here." said one of the members of the Hissing Vipers who rode at the front. They had arrived at the outskirts of the forest.

Antonios immediately raised his hand to help her get down. She grimaced inwardly, but took his hand. It was just a gentlemanly gesture after all. As they tied their horses to the nearby trees, they formulated a plan.

She wasn't familiar with the composition of their team, but it seemed like Borg was the leader. "Listen up!. Our quest for today is to hunt a group of Barghests that have been showing up in the outskirts of the forest lately. We're going to go with our typical formation, two in the rear, and two on the front. Hannah-san, Antonios, and I are going to go look for bait."

"Bait?" Tiamat curiously asked.

Ah, that's right, she had used her sense of smell to find the group of Barghests in the forest. But her curiosity had gotten the better of her.

"Didn't you know Hannah-sama? Barghests love to prey on goblins because they're the type to play with their food before devouring them." Antonios explained.

"Then, do you have to kill a goblin first before we can hunt them?" a sound question from her part. This would waste a lot of time, time that she couldn't afford to lose. Though she thought that killing some innocent goblins for bait was cruel, she was slightly horrified when she found out that part of her didn't mind.

"Ideally, yes. Or else they won't come. They're typically the type to avoid humans, that's why we find it weird that they're hunting on the outskirts of the forest where human typically come and go." Borg explained.

"So where should we go find these goblins?"

"There's a small cave nearby where goblins dwell, we only need to kill one of them for bait."

"That's a waste of time." she mentioned to the team, and proceeded to go inside the forest all by herself.

"W-wait, Hannah-sama!" Antonios warned her. "To be going into the deep forest all by yourself is dangerous! We need to come up with a plan."

Tiamat stopped and turned to look at Antonios and the rest of the Hissing Vipers. "It's fine Antonios-san. I'll lead you to the Barghests myself." Having made her point, she continued walking towards the heart of the forest. "Aren't you going to come?" she asked the team who were all frozen in their boots.

Antonios was the first one to break out of his stupor, followed by the rest of the team.

Borg followed behind her as well, but his expression had turned stern. He wasn't too happy about the whole situation. Going into the forest without a plan was dangerous and suicidal.

Tiamat noticed his discomfort. "Relax." she mentioned to the whole team. "Whatever happens I won't let you die, so please rest assured."

"It's not like we don't trust you or your skills, Hannah-san." Borg replied, although he felt relieved that the Priestess was going to make sure that they were going to return home safe and sound. But there was still a sense of foreboding that shadowed the edges of his mind.

He believed she was being too hasty. He didn't know what the young Priestess was capable of, and in their excitement they had asked her to join in on the quest. They were essentially putting their lives into the hands of a stranger.

"How are you going to find the Barghests without bait?" one of them asked.

"It's simple, really…" Tiamat inwardly smiled to herself, it truly was simple. She could smell the monster's trails ever since they had arrived. Moreover, it seemed that the Barghests wanted to make their presence known. She had seen a lot of marks in the dirt. Paw prints and the scarred bark on the trees.

Of course in real life, there was no way Tiamat could pinpoint the location of animals or beasts from their trails. She was not a hunter. But since she and Momonga came to the New World, her enhanced senses had made her aware of all of these things.

"You have to look closely at their trails." she simply answered. "For example, this paw print on the ground." she pointed at the paw print that obviously belonged to a Barghest with her staff. Not just one, but a whole bunch of paw prints. It's like they're running from something instead of chasing something. That's because there was no other animal trails on the ground aside from the Barghests'.

She looked out around her surroundings. By now, she was a few meters away from where they began. But the forest was humid and she could feel it getting more stifling with each step they took into the forest.

One detail with the trail had been bothering her.

If they were running away, why did they run in groups? Wasn't it better for them to disperse rather than being hunted all at the same time?

Not long after they followed the trail, she heard a growl from the shadows.

"They're here." she warned the Hissing Vipers.

Antonios immediately stepped in front of her, as if to protect her. She rolled her eyes, a motion that went unnoticed by the Hissing Vipers. The rest of the team got into formation as well.

There were seven people in total including her. Tiamat was in front with the other two, while two remained in the middle, and the other two moved to the back. She had observed how they got into formation from the corner of her eyes. Their movement were practical, as if they had done this a thousand times or even more, and she wondered what kind of hell they had to go through to acquire those skills.

All of them were swordsmen. There were no archers, no assassins or thieves, no tank, and no support. They were essentially helpless against enemies who could attack from a distance, and would have to rely on potions to recover any damage they sustained in battles. She wondered how in the world they got as far as they did...

Soon, the Barghests crept out of the bushes. There were twenty Barghests in total. The Hissing Vipers tensed up and prepared to meet them head on.

Only twenty? Well, this made her job easy. She immediately casted one of her more basic support spells, " 『Draconic Power』."

The Hissing Vipers could feel their muscles condensing, their bones hardening to the point where they were unbreakable, their very souls imbued with the essence of power. As a great ocean of unbridled might surged through them, enhancing their bodies beyond mortal limits, they felt as if even mountains would shatter before them.

"So this is your power, Hannah-san." Borg whispered in awe.

"I'm going to act as support this time." she responded matter-of-factly, and moved towards the back of the formation. If any of the Barghests could break the Hissing Vipers' formation, then perhaps it would be a big enough threat to be killed by her hands.

One Barghest in particular growled loudly, and lowered its body, preparing to pounce. The chain wrapped around it started to swirl in a deadly orbit as it lunged at Borg and Antonios.

With a single swipe of his sword, Antonios bisected the Barghest, parting it in half as if he was swinging his blade through the air.

"A-Amazing. In just one move…" Antonios muttered out loud, completely amazed at the buffs Tiamat had put on them.

Feeling a sense of dread crawl into their hearts at the brutal death of their packmate, the rest of the Barghests attacked. Seeing that it was only a few low leveled Barghests against six buffed gold plated Adventurers, Tiamat could see that this would be an easy fight. She didn't even have to do anything.

With a few parries and counters, the Barghests were defeated. Sensing that there were no more Barghests in the area, she concluded that the six they had just killed must have been the Barghests the quest was referring to. Confirming the absence of other threats, she withdrew her mana from her buffs, and the team felt the strength drain out of them as they reverted back to their normal power level.

"Is this all, Hannah-sama?"

"Yes, the trails only indicate Barghests prints on the ground. This must've been it." she lied smoothly.

"I think we should at least look around the forest before we finish up. That was way too quick." A person in the back raised his concerns and all agreed.

"Then the two of you will go east. You both, go west. Me, Antonios, and Hannah-san will go North." Borg commanded. "We will meet again in half an hour at the entrance of the forest."

The group nodded and dispersed as planned. Borg and Antonios led the way while Tiamat followed behind them.

In silence, they prowled deeper into the forest. Trying to get a grasp of where they were, Antonios suddenly noticed that it was far too quiet.

"Oi, Borg…"

Borg looked towards Antonios and nodded. He mouthed, "I am aware."

The forest was dead silent.

There were no birds chirping despite it being early afternoon, no sounds of rustling leaves in the bushes and trees, and no high pitched sounds of chirping from insects.

There was nothing. It was as if all the living things in the forest had vanished..

There was only the whispering of leaves and the murmuring of the wind.

The eerie quiet put Antonios and Borg on edge.

They immediately raised their weapons and started walking slowly in their combat stance.

Tiamat just slowly followed behind.

A heavy snort sounded on their left side, as if someone was sleeping nearby. Borg and Antonios warily turned their heads, looked at each other, then nodded. Borg turned to the left and slowly walked towards the direction of where the sound came from while Antonios covered his rear.

He stood in front of Tiamat's left side, as if to protect her from harm.

Tiamat didn't move from her spot, she just tilted her head to the side and stared at Borg over Antonios's shoulder.

As Borg slowly lifted the heavy leaves from the branch of the tree, he suddenly started to inch back in fear.

Alarmed, Antonios called out, making sure nothing was wrong. "B-Borg?"

"We should get out of here…" Borg hissed fearfully, and sprinted for the forest entrance. "Antonios, let's go!"

Antonios knew that expression. The expression of haunting fear, the exact same as the one from four years ago.

"Hannah-sama, we need to go." He called out to the Priestess and ran ahead of her.

Slowly she followed behind him. Her pace slow, Antonios whispered loudly at her to speed up. Before she left, she turned her head back in the direction Borg was looking at earlier, and the corners of her lips curved ever so slightly upwards as glints of golden light flashed from the undergrowth.

When Antonios called her for the second time, she turned back, all traces of a smile wiped from her face and she followed them out of the forest.

(๑ ⌓ ๑)

A man suddenly awoke.

His chest was heaving as if he had been running for days. He blearily opened his eyes, and took in his surroundings. The first thing he noticed was that he couldn't move his body. From his neck to the tips of his toes, he was completely paralyzed.

He couldn't look around since his head was strapped to something, and he could only see what was in his direct field of vision.

He closed his eyes, trying to calm down. He tried to convince himself that this was just a bad dream.

He opened his eyes once again, and his eyes filled with determination. He was an important member to the guild, so his comrades must've known that he was kidnapped. For now, he had to make sure he remembered the place well. Afterall, gathering information has always been his forte.

The first thing he noted about his surroundings was that he was in the house of some noble. There was no way a newly instated Adventurer was capable of obtaining a house with a room of this size. From what he could see with his limited field of view, the walls and floor were impeccably clean. He tried to look upwards, and saw that the ceiling was made with stone slabs. He looked downwards to find that he was naked, butt naked, and strapped down with metal.

His lips became incredibly dry upon recalling the shocking turn of events. The last thing he remembered was that he had failed to inject the Priestess with the potion given to him. He licked his lips, only to realize that something was stuck to his mouth, making him incapable of speaking or closing his mouth. This terrified him.

He had lived a long life and had seen much more than an average adventurer. But he had never seen a prisoner being treated this way. The extent his capturers were willing to go to in order to immobilize their prisoners was insane, and fear grew within his heart.

He jolted in surprise when saw an abomination from the edges of his vision.

A bloated corpse with a beard of writhing tentacles inched closer to him. _'No, was it sashaying?'_ But how could there be a monster in a noble's house?!

"He's awake, Demiurge-sama." The voice sounded like a heavy gargle in his ears.

"Good." a sharp voice replied to the bloated corpse.

Then a man with long ears walked in, probably a dark elf from his skin tone and sharp ears. He had never seen an elf before, but he was certain that those ears were a clear enough indication. Was he perhaps in the realm of the elves?

The man continued to gather information. The dark elf in front of him was tall and well kempt. His eyes slowly traveled downwards, until he saw a silver tail covered with metal plates and six long spikes at the end. And suddenly he knew that he was not in the country of elves.

"Release his mouth." the tall elf, no, creature, ordered the bloated corpse. The tentacle abomination took off the metal plate that covered his mouth. He felt a temporary reprieve on the muscles of his jaw when the monster removed it. Just how long had he been held captive here?

"What's your name?" The red suited man leaned towards him, glasses reflecting the stark glare of the room

His throat was dry, and he took his time to answer the suited man's question. Why should he anyways?

Right now his plan was to stall as long as he could until his friends came and saved him.

"I will ask you once again, and you will answer within three seconds. What is your name?" The red suited creature repeated.

He felt a piece cold metal below one of his fingers, specifically under his nails. "Why should I answer to-!" He felt a searing sharp pain from his right side, and let out a sharp scream. He looked down from the corner of his eye and through the haze of pain saw the thing the bloated creature had been pulling off was his own nail by using some sort of metallic instrument.

He could feel it, his blood slowly running from his fingers down to the floor, falling down slowly but surely in small drops, like an unclosed tap.

"You only need to answer my questions." The suited man said in a monotone voice. "What is your name?" He repeated once again.

"Zirco! I'm Zirco Sesila!" He answered through gritted teeth.

"How old are you?"

"Thirty four years old."

"Do you have a family?"

"What does my family have to do with-!" Another nail was ripped off. "NO!" He screamed once again. The searing pain had felt like dipping his fingers in molten iron.

His thirst laid forgotten. Now, all he could feel was a hot blistering pain from where his nails were supposed to be.

"Answer the question." The creature cooly demanded.

He gritted his teeth. There was no way he was just going to lay down and accept this. He could feel a surge of emotion rising up from the pit of his stomach to his head.

"I'll kill you." He whispered. "I'll kill all of you! Don't you know who I am! When they're here I'll make sure you'll-!"

Another scream escaped the man's parched throat, filling the entire room with an infernal litany of his pain and suffering.

"Do you have a family?" the creature repeated.

"Kkh…" the pain was too much for him to handle. Throughout all his years of Adventuring he had never felt such immense pain, and so the man relented. "A wife and a daughter." he replied in a small whisper.

"Their names?"

He shut his mouth tight. There was no way he would answer that question, especially now that he knew where he was. He was in the castle of demons, and the man in front of him was definitely one.

The bloated corpse cut into his right arm, and at the unexpected attack he opened up his mouth in a long piercing cry. His throat was dry and sore from repeated screaming. His ears were ringing with the sound of his own agony. His face were soaked with tears and snot.

"I told you to answer in three seconds. Their names." the demon repeated.

A large pool of blood was starting to form on the floor as he gasped in pain. It was agonizing, and moreover, inhumane for them to treat him so. But what use was humanity to those who weren't humans?

His vision slowly dimmed from blood loss, and his lungs desperately fought for air.

He broke down in tears. If he lied would they know? Would they notice? Too scared to tell even a single lie, he apologized to his family in his heart as he whispered. "Mary and Maria."

"What is your job?"

"Adventurer…" his voice started to weaken.

"Neuronist. I'll give you fifteen minutes. Make it count." And with that the red-suited demon left the room.

"Of course, Demiurge-sama." the bloated horror bowed. The confined space seemed to shrink as the monstrous blob approached him. His body locked up in fear as he silently gulped, knowing that the worst was yet to come.

"Ho ho ho, I've been waiting for this." the monster cheerfully explained as it waved various sharp implements around in the air. "You know, I've been having a lot of fun with the humans Lady Tiamat sent me last time, so I wanted to try something new." It got even closer to him and in a horrid parody of a seductive whisper. "To be honest, you perfectly deserved it." as its sticky and long tongue caressed his cheeks.

He whimpered in terror. What could this creature do in fifteen minutes? He wondered

"You dared to attack our Supreme Being, whose beauty could even be compared to mine." the creature whispered in his ears. "Aren't you curious of what I did with those other humans?"

The man could only sniffle in response. He tried not to scream, afraid that his voice would give out on him. He felt extremely weak. His vision swam from all the pain he had felt. His eyes were dazed, distant, and glazed over. He could feel the metal bindings fall slack as his body was released from its bindings, but he was too weak to do anything as the creature in front of him pinned him down on the nearest table.

His body landed on the metal table with a hard thud, his blood smearing all over the place, and throughout the coldness of the room, the only warmth he felt was the trickle of his blood that is splattered across his naked body.

"I blessed them."

The man was taken aback by that response, and it showed in the way his eyes widened and his breath hitched.

"I consecrated every inch of their body. They tasted alright for filthy humans, so I'd go for another round, and another, and another until they were battered and covered in their nasty blood."

He could sense the madness in the way the creature spoke. He wished he had never learned of what happened. Anger and fear burned inside him and he tried in vain to pull away from the creature.

The creature gave him a huge smile, showing him its irregular teeth, "And you screamed just like they did."

Before he knew it, the creature suffocated him with its grotesque body and crushed his wrists with its tentacle like hands.

"Well, I suppose you'll experience it soon enough. However, Demiurge-sama is too bossy. Fifteen minutes is definitely not enough" The monster's tentacles waved around in apparent excitement. "No matter. Shall we make good use of our time?" she said lovingly, but nothing about her or the whole situation is lovely.

He needed to hold on, he needed to wait until his comrades got here. That was the least he could do.

But they did not come.

* * *

He just had a bad dream.

He was captured by a demon, taken to the demon's castle, and had his nails ripped off, his arms cut off, moreover that creature… it had…

No, no. he did not want to think about it.

That's right, that was just a dream.

He slowly opened his eyes.

The same stone slabs were in the ceiling, the same constrictive bindings, the same bone-chilling coldness. He was once again bound to his original spot.

But the room had obvious differences.

Dried blood splattered in front of his field of vision. _His_ blood.

He started to tremble in fear. For he realized, it was not a dream.

A red-suited demon entered his field of vision bearing a wide diabolical grin.

"What is your name?"

"W-what? I answered these questions before-!" This time instead of his right arm, he felt a searing pain in his leg, and he saw from the corner of his eye that the monster was inspecting a bloodied toenail. "Stop! Please, I'm begging you, stop!"

"What is your name?"

"Zirco Sesila!"

"What's your wife's name?"

"Mary."

"What is your job?"

"Adventurer."

"Age?"

"Thirty four."

"Why did you attack Lady Tiamat?"

"Tiamat? Who are you- NONONONONONONO-!"

Neuronist had neatly snipped his left leg off.

Blood was once again pooling onto the floor. The sound of blood drip-dropping onto the smooth stone ground accompanied the man's ragged breathing. The room was filled with the metallic scent of blood.

"Fifteen minutes." The demon said once again, and the bloated monster giggled happily.

Same metal table, same searing pain, same blood, same pain, same action, same tongue. Oh God, that tongue.

Painpainpainpainpain_snap_painpainpainpainpain_painonhisrectum_painpainpainpainpainpain_crack_painpainpainpainpain_splat_painpain.

* * *

"What is your age?"

"Three...four..."

"What's your last name?"

"Sesila…"

"What is your job?"

"My name is Zirco Sesila, I'm thirty four years old, my wife is Mary and my daughter is Maria. I'm an adventurer. My name is Zirco Sesila, I'm thirty four years old, my wife is Mary and my daughter is Maria. I'm an adventurer. My-" he repeated over and over again, his mind long broken.

His nails had been plucked only to be regrown and torn off again. He was repeatedly stabbed in the most sensitive parts of his body, dipped into bubbling acid, and had his brain slowly eaten by insects. His organs were melted then reconstructed in an endless. tortuous. loop. There was nothing they hadn't done to him. And everytime he was nearly brought to the brink, they healed him so that they could do it all. over. again.

How many hours had passed, how many fifteen minutes had been repeated, he had no idea. He did not keep track. He could not keep track. All he could focus on was the _painpainpain_.

He had long since given up on any hopes of rescue. He wished they would just let him die already.

(๑ ⌓ ๑)

Humans were delicately crafted, fine-tuned machines.

One of the things that kept such fragile machines alive in a world where only strength mattered was adrenaline. It was one of the body's vital defense mechanisms when faced with life or death circumstances.

Stressful situations triggered the release of the hormone adrenaline into the bloodstream. By pumping adrenaline throughout the body, it triggered specific processes in various organs, for example, it might make the body send extra oxygen to the lungs to aid the improve the human's running capabilities.

But a quick fight or flight reaction to a threat weren't the only feats adrenalines was capable of accomplishing.

It could temporarily increase a human's strength, sharpen mental focus, and most importantly, decrease the body's sensitivity to pain.

So what would happen if that option was taken away from a certain human?

Demiurge, by nature was the cruelest creation of Nazarick. And he expressed his viciousness in ways that would make most humans empty their stomachs.

By forcing humans to undergo extreme mental and physical stress, the body would in response release adrenaline from the adrenal gland in order to distract the body from pain.

After much trial and error and even more corpses, Demiurge found out a way to prevent the body from producing the hormone.

He healed him.

By healing the human, the body learned that no matter what happened or how extreme the situation might be, it would still be healed within a few minutes. Thus, he rendered the adrenal gland incapable of secreting adrenaline into the body by fooling it into thinking there was no danger. Making it impossible for the body to distract the mind from all of the pain the human experienced.

But Demiurge wasn't satisfied.

This insect dared to attack one of the Supreme Beings of Nazarick.

No matter how much pain and suffering the worm went through, it wasn't enough. It would never be enough.

If only Lady Tiamat hadn't asked him to keep this insect alive, he would've tossed it in the 7th Floor and let him swim in the warmth of the volcanoes.

He despised the vermin that had forced him into such a situation.

As soon as the Eight-Edged Assassin who was ordered to follow Lady Tiamat had briefed him on what happened. Even then, Demiurge had almost lost it. He had went outside for a bit and destroyed a bit of the land near Nazarick, creating a huge smoking crater on the ground. He didn't want to damage any of Nazarick's property after all.

He mentally made a note to ask Mare for a favor afterwards.

This definitely wouldn't do. He could not allow his emotions get the best of him. The Supreme Beings had entrusted this task to him and it would be blasphemous to have slacked in any shape, way, or form. He tidied up his suit which had collected a fair amount of dust with a few gentle swipes. This was a suit given to him by his creator, and he had to take good care of it.

It was about time he gave Lady Tiamat the report of his interrogation. There was no time to be dallying. He had prolonged this farce for too long.

He went back to the 5th Floor, and with no small amount of joy, saw that the man had completely and utterly broken down. The fool's eyes were blank, absolutely devoid of all will to live. Demiurge had never seen Neuronist happier.

He stood in front of the worm like he did before, finally deciding to use his 『Command Mantra』.

**"Why did you attack Lady Tiamat?"**

"I was ordered to…" his voice a tiny whisper against the demon's booming voice.

**"Who ordered the attack?"** he continued.

"Pluton Ainzach…"

**"Why?"**

"Capture her, dragon, charm, babies, capture, drago…"

At the short implication, in that short moment, Demiurge had never felt angrier. His wrath was made tangible as the brisk chill of the frozen tundra was blasted away as he unconsciously began to cast 『Hell Flame』. Oh, how dearly he wished he was allowed to tear the filth to pieces.

He gritted his teeth. Why, oh why, was he forbidden from cleansing the world of the trash before him? He quickly pushed the thought aside. It was not his place to question the will of a Supreme Being.

It would be such a simple task to stick his hand into the worm's heart and rupture it inside its body. But no, death would be too kind for him. He needed to suffer more.

**"ELABORATE!"**

The worm flinched at the sudden boom in his voice, but complied nonetheless.

"Control her through charm potion, control the priestess then you can control the dragon, control the dragon then you can control the world. Control the priestess and sell her to the highest bidder. Her offspring will be strong, as talented as she is. Control the priestess control the dragon control the world control her offspring control the priestess control the dragon control the offspring control the dragon control charm potion control world control bidder control world…" the worm repeated in an endless cycle of whispers.

Then, in a brief second, Demiurge disobeyed the Supreme Being's order by cleaning cutting off the maggot's head with a swipe of his hand.

"This definitely won't do." he fixed his glasses upwards, using the hand that wasn't covered in blood. "Revive him Neuronist. I need to make a report to Lady Tiamat. Do whatever you want with him, as long as you keep him alive."

"As you wish…" a disturbingly girlish giggle escaped through her mass of tentacles.

With that he left, and behind him 『Hell Flame』 broke loose. Luckily, the cold tundra prevented further property damage.

(๑ ⌓ ๑)

It was her second time there, and she was already used to the impression of the guildmaster's office. On one side of the lounge suite, sat the guildmaster Pluton Ainzach, and on the other side, relaxed three men wearing their Adventurer's armor.

The first man had a tangled mane of rust colored hair and wore a tan breastplate. The second one was a tall corpulent man with long dark blond hair, narrow eyes, and a wide nose. The last person had brown hair and sharp eyes, and had been smirking at her ever since she walked into the office. _'Weirdo.'_.

Pluton bore a hard face, but when he saw Tiamat enter the room, she unmistakably saw the tension around him loosen a little.

"Lady Hannah, excellent. We've been expecting you. With this everyone is present."

She wondered why there were just four people in the room. The fact that everyone was scowling didn't make the atmosphere any lighter either.

"Please sit for now. I have a bit of a complicated story to tell―"

While saying so, Pluton left his seat and poured a pot of black tea into a kettle. While waiting for the tea, one of the three men in front of her tried to loosen up the atmosphere in the room.

The three men who sat in front of her all had the same impression.

Every one of them had turned his head towards the door to look at the new enigma in their city. "...a goddess of the moon." the words unconsciously spilling from his mouth. Because in front of them stood an unbelievably beautiful girl.

Her pale skin was without a single flaw, as if it was woven with moonlight. Her silver hair gently shone to her waist like a star glimmering in the night. When it came to her countenance, she made the most beautiful girl at the yearly festival look like nothing but a crudely carved pumpkin or a scarecrow.

She was a fairytale come alive. Even the descriptions of princesses out of fairytale books failed to express her beauty. One man gulped in disbelief.

"Nice to meet you gentlemen." she smiled politely at them.

Her smile was gentle and sincere. Her graceful fingers quickly covered her delicate lips in embarrassment as she accidentally let out a silent laugh. Bellote stood up from his chair and lightly patted his armor to remove the clinging dirt and sand.

"Hannah, right?" the rust colored haired man bravely started the conversation. "My name is Bellote, a Mythril class adventurer and the leader of Sky Wolf. To my right is Moknach, a Mythril class adventurer and the leader of Rainbow. To my left is Igvarge, also a Mythril class adventurer, and the leader of Kralga."

They had heard of the rumors of her unparalleled beauty, as well as the dragon that accompanied her. Yet, she only appeared to be around twenty-three or twenty-four years old. Clinging onto her body was a dress that appeared to be priceless despite its simplicity. Upon closer inspection, her white dress was decorated with magnificent silver embroidery. The closer they looked the more and more detailed and impossible the dress seemed. A dress straight from the annals of legend.

In fact, everything seemed to be mysteriously perfect with this woman. From her cascading silky hair down to her shoes, she was an otherworldly being that mesmerized them at first glance.

The staff that she held in her hand gleamed as it exerted a mysterious pressure. They could practically feel waves of power permeating through the floating azure orb. The staff was decorated with engravings of ivy and writs of an indecipherable language. No matter how one looked at it, the staff radiated holy might.

The only thing out of place was the Mythril plate perched on her hips.

No matter how much they looked, her appearance was that of a locked-up princess who shouldn't have been in a place like this.

"So you're Hannah huh? Amazing to have reached Mythril at such a young age." Moknach complimented her, his voice booming in the sizable office.

"The one with the dragon right?" Igvarge interjected.

"Yes." she nodded.

"I hope this doesn't offend you, but you don't look like the typical adventurer. How old are you?" Moknach asked curiously.

"Ha! You don't look like you could do anything. Your dragon must be the one who does all those quests for you!" Igvage provoked her, questioning her ability as an adventurer.

"Igvarge!" Bellote scolded him.

"It's alright Bellote-san, I'm not offended. It is perfectly understandable for Igvarge-san to assume things. But if you're worried that my performance is inadequate because of my age, then you can rest assured. I will make sure your worries won't come to be." she softly explained to the three men in front of her, trying her best to diffuse the tension.

Honestly, she wanted to laugh for a bit. To her, Igvarge's behaviour was like a jealous cat engulfed by pride and resentment, unable to accept that there was someone better than him.

Oh, how wrong he was.

"That's right Igvarge." the guildmaster interjected. "Lady Hannah is a very capable adventurer. Within three days she had finished…" Pluton was sweating a bit and realized he shouldn't have brought up that line of thought.

Igvarge quickly glanced at the guild master and pressed the issue, "She finished what?"

Guildmaster slowly exhaled and mumbled, "...a total of fifty three quests, ranging from F-ranked missions all the way to A-ranked missions without a single failure. Most of the quests we had available in the guild for this month had been completed by her."

Silence descended upon the room. No one wanted to believe what they just heard. But...it should be impossible. It would take a small army of adventurers of the highest caliber to finish most quests for the month. This was something that had never happened in the history of the guild. Yet she, some newcomer with a dragon did it herself? In three days?!

"It seems that I made a very wise decision in raising her rank to Mythril. However, we can all agree a pebble cannot depict the true nature of a mountain. Wouldn't you agree Lady Hannah." Pluton gently poured a cup of black tea in front of her, acting as if he was in front of some blasted royal.

"You flatter me, guildmaster." she said sincerely.

"F-fifty three quests… That's not possible!" Igvarge slammed his fist against the table as he stood up in disbelief. "There's no way a person can finish that many quests in only three days! Hell, even in a year!"

"Igvarge is right." this time Moknach raised his concerns. "One team could fulfill at most about three quests in one day depending on the ranking of those quests. Most parties, however, usually only take two quests per week. How...how did you do it?" He asked with traces of amazement and concern in his voice.

She raised the cup of tea to her nose, inhaling the soft scent of the tea. The faint smell released the tension in her shoulders. "It seems that you gentlemen have forgotten that I have a dragon." she took a small sip of her tea. "I simply fly."

At her brief explanation, the three men in front of her opened their mouths in disbelief. Of course, it made total sense! Just fly a dragon to your quest! But since no one had ever tamed a dragon or any companion that had the ability to fly and carry someone before, this simple fact didn't cross their minds.

The distance covered between each quest would be smaller via flying compared to riding a horse. The speed of traditional methods such as carriages and boats were laughable in comparison.

At that, the guildmaster chuckled at her statement. "Imagine that! An adventurer who can transverse the skies with a dragon, Lady Hannah is certainly the first I heard of!" He tried to diffuse the situation before the Mythrils present completely lost their calm.

"I'm flattered Ainzach-san." she gave him a small smile. "So why did you summon us here?"

Pluton then spread out a large piece of parchment on the table. It looked like what had been laid out was a map of E-Rantel and its surroundings.

Using her invisibility spell the other day, Tiamat had travelled around to make sure the map that had been given by the Elder of Carne Village was accurate. The map was ridiculously oversimplified and on top of that, the terrain scale was inconsistent. Perhaps it was because the measurement technique was underdeveloped. She didn't really know whether or not the inaccuracies were on purpose, but as an outline the map was good enough.

She had memorized the surroundings and entered it in her 『Automatic Mapping』, a skill which creates a 2-D representation of her surroundings in a five hundred meter radius around the player, but only if the player had explored the place before. It made things easier since she was able to fly around the area, which allowed her to quickly construct a mental chart of the forest.

Nonetheless, it was unnecessary to reveal the cards in her hand, so she pretended to view the map with great interest.

"By the way, does the young lady know of the phenomenon called the stampede?" Moknach asked Tiamat.

Tiamat sat there blinking her eyes, and as if he had already anticipated that she wouldn't understand, Moknach continued.

"Once in a while at the Great Forest of Tob, on average of once every ten years, monsters from the forest gather together and launch a massive raid on E-Rantel and nearby villages. The massive monster movement phenomenon, the stampede."

Saying so, he put his finger on the Great Forest of Tob.

"Do you know what causes this phenomenon?" Tiamat asked, clearly intrigued.

"Yes. There are three main reasons. First is because of food shortages in the forest. Once every ten years or so the forest's population greatly increases, causing a severe lack of food, forcing the monster's in the forest to venture out to look for food. The second reason is because of the power struggle within the forest. The losing powers are kicked out by the Wise King of the Forest and attack villagers or other things that they find." Bellato patiently explained to her.

Moknach continued. "Usually this would be considered a C-ranked quest since the monsters would be disorganized. Nothing major, usually just mere goblins and wolves and generally nothing above an ogre. But this stampede is on a scale that exceeds any we've ever seen in the past. But the greatest problem lies with the third reason. The birth of a capable monster who leads the monsters within the forest."

"Like some sort of a field boss?"

This time Igvarge interjected. "What's that? The one who's the leader isn't simply leading a bunch of monsters. What we're talking about is a monster that can lead others to the extent of uniting the weak groups of the forest together. In that situation there would be various kinds of monsters that possesses monstrous strength."

"At any rate, if it's that serious shouldn't you leave it to someone who could this so called stampede? Like an Adamantine adventurer?

Igvarge banged his hands on the table, clearly displeased with her reply. "You mention something like an Adamantine adventurer, but how many Adamantine adventurers do you think exist in this world?! Just to merely summon them, how much time and money do you think it would take?!" he angrily rebuked her.

"However, right now the situation is different. The Gold plated team, Hissing Vipers had actually ventured into the Great Forest of Tob for a quest. They saw monsters sitting around waiting for orders, as if hypnotized, on a scale that we've never seen before, and they thought it could be another stampede, even if the last occurrence only happened four years ago." the guildmaster explained.

"I can still remember the stampede from four years ago. It was hell… even when we were retreating some of our comrades were overrun and killed one by one. A lot of copper and iron adventurers died that year. Some of the were able to miraculously escape from the horde and gave up on adventuring all together."

The leader of team Rainbow narrated bitterly. His eyes lost a bit of their brightness upon remembering the massacre.

"This time the monsters number in the thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, ranging from lowly goblins to even frost dragons, if the report is to be believed. All of the forest's monsters concentrated in one place is definitely not going to be a pretty view. But the thing that's troubling me the most is that we have yet to see the demon who leads them." he continued.

"So, why did you call me here?"

Her words made the other members present lower their gazes uncomfortably.

"We want to ask for your opinion on this matter, as well as your advice on what should be done." answered the guildmaster.

Hearing Pluton plead, she give it some thought.

"Throughout these phenomenons, have you tried having a conversation with them?"

"Hahahah! Hilarious!"

"Ridiculous!"

"Don't say something so stupid!"

"There is no way we can communicate with monsters!"

Those were the shouts that erupted towards her in response to her comment. Especially Igvarge whose bloodshot eyes made her realize that what she said was completely insane by the New World's standards.

If the phenomenon that was currently happening was the result of a demon leading the huge number of monsters, it should be possible to communicate with them, taking into account the intelligence required to lead a large number of followers. That was why the first thing that came to her mind was to have a discussion. Was her logic so flawed?

Well, it wasn't as if there was a demon leading them this time around anyways.

"It cannot be done. For those monsters, human beings are nothing but livestock. We are literally seen as nothing but food. Trust me. Countless generations have tried. None have ever succeeded." Bellato said as he shook his head.

"Don't you have any procedures on how to defeat them? Like calling allied forces?"

"Of course we have called aid from other Adventurers Guilds, but something like an army cannot easily move from one area to another. Gathering units that are scattered in various places, and then organizing them until their departure could take several weeks. So it would be impossible to gather a large force when the monsters are right outside our gates."

"Then, there is no choice but to hold out until those forces come, right?"

"That is also impossible, even though E-Rantel is a well protected Fortress City, it cannot protect the villages around the city."

"In that case, shouldn't everyone just abandon their villages and escape into the city?"

"―You bitch, stop messing around! How many of our comrades do you think have sacrificed their lives to protect those villages?! And you're telling us that we should just abandon them?!"

Igvarge rose from his seat and was just about to grab her from across the table, until Bellato tackled him to the floor. But Tiamat remained calm. She raised her staff off the ground and tapped it against the floor, causing ripples of mana to travel along the floor. At this Igvarge gasped and fell back unto the couch.

"Mess around you say... I'm the one who should be saying that. After all the times the stampede has already occurred, why the hell did you guys make those pioneering villages anyways? That's just like building a house on a cliff or a riverside where there's always flooding during rainy seasons. Even if you wanted to establish them there, then why did you not put more effort into patrolling everyday or even make a defensive wall surrounding those villages? Did you gentlemen even do anything other than puff out your chests with pride?"

The guildmaster lowered his head with a bitter face, but she was far from finished.

"But when these villages are falling to the monsters at their doorsteps, their bodies become the alarm, warning you that danger is fast approaching. Is that it? And you have the audacity to flaunt yourselves in front of me that you're Mythril class adventurers? Don't make me laugh." at this point they knew that the soft spoken lady had been pushed over the edge.

"...It is just as you say. However, as the city's guildmaster, it is my duty and responsibility to protect this city and those villages. Just this once, please lend us your power."

As quick as a summer storm, her expression quickly morphed back into that of an inscrutable lady. "As stated in the guild rules, this is a private quest for me isn't it?"

"Yes."

"Then what sort of reward for me do you have? I don't need your money, nor your honor and gratitude. So what could you present me?"

Bellato stood up in disbelief. "How could you? I thought you were a kind and virtuous lady! You demanded payment from us while you saved Carne Village free of charge?!"

She clicked her tongue at the rust haired adventurer, "Bellato-san, make no mistake. The current me who you are asking for help is a Mythril ranked adventurer who has a dragon as her companion. You, Moknach-san, Igvarge-san and Ainzach-san were the one who created the request. As stated in the guild guidebook, when it comes to emergency requests, the prices can surge up. But I don't want any of your money. So what are you gentlemen willing to give me?"

"Khh…"

"Bellato-san, I will say this one more time." she stood up from the sofa, raising her silver staff in her right hand, and angled the tip of the staff at Bellato. "I am Hannah Annafelowz, the disciple of the Goddess of Dragons, who is as eternal as heaven and earth, and the one who was praised as the ancestor of God! Do you think material things such as money will be enough to please her? Or do you try to arouse my sympathy and sway me? I am not a person who can be taken lightly!"

She turned her staff sideways at Moknach and in the distance they could hear the loud roar of the titan that had come to visit their town several days ago. The dark clouds slowly gathered across the sky, blotting out the sun, and soon the room was filled with a dull grey, as if the Goddess herself was displeased.

"If you manage to neutralize the stampede, I will raise your rank to Adamantine." the guildmaster eventually offered.

Her incited emotions cooled down with a gulp of a breath at that sentence.

She sat back down, calm and poised, as if nothing ever happened. The sky also seemed to clear up. The once dark gray clouds that blocked the warm rays of sunlight were nowhere to be seen, and in its place soft white clouds floated across the sky..

"Is that so?"

She lets go of her staff, and leaned it back against the sofa, reaching out to the warm cup of tea in front of her and slowly picked up a small tea spoon to gently mix her tea.

"You think being Adamantine alone is enough, Ainzach-san?"

All they could hear was the soft tone of her voice, as well as the small clink of metal against the ceramic cup.

"If I succeed in defeating this stampede, I want you to raise my rank to Adamantine, and I want you, Ainzach-san, to pull back your spies."

"S-Spies? What are you talking about?"

She put down the tea cup and gave him a small knowing smile. It was a beautiful smile, but he knew better. It was a smile full of promises, and he knew the promises weren't good ones. "Surely you didn't think I wouldn't notice, Ainzach-san? You put something in this tea, causing it to taste overbearingly sweet"

Pluton's eyes widened. "H-how did you…"

"Poison?" There was no way, at this point she knew that she was necessary for whatever he was planning. She had given his spy ample opportunities to kill her, but he didn't do so. "No, I'm sure your intention was not to kill me. This sweet taste… perhaps charm potion?"

It seemed that her speculation had hit the mark for the guildmaster started to stumble in place, and he tried in vain to cover the glass potion on his desk with his body.

She smiled, remembering the events from yesterday. As soon as Demiurge had finished interrogating the stalker, he had obtained information that the fluid in the syringe was probably a type of charm potion, and she asked Demiurge to give her the syringe so that they could test the effect it had.

But after looking at it with 『Appraise Item』, the potion was definitely only effective on low leveled monsters or newbie players. With her resist stats stacked so high, there was no way a weak charm potion would be able to affect her.

So she did the unthinkable. In front of Demiurge, she disabled her 『High Tier Physical Immunity』 and stuck the syringe into her left arm.

Demiurge grabbed her hand in panic, but it was too late, the syringe already stuck deep in her artery. Demiurge immediately called for Neuronist so that Neuronist could heal her, but she waved her hand, saying that there was no need for him to do that.

Afterall, just as she had thought, the charm potion was ineffective against her high resist.

"You know the funniest thing? I was attacked by a man back in the Kingdom while I was doing my first quest. And the man wanted to inject me with this." She pulled out a syringe from the small pouch at her waist, and the guildmaster's heart started beating even faster. "Is this what your guild does? Spying on their adventurers and poisoning them? Perhaps you are doing the same to these gentlemen as well, guildmaster?"

"P-Pluton, w-why?" a small voice of disbelief came from one of the Mythril ranked adventurers.

Tiamat could see Ainzach panicking. His blood pressure was over the top, and he could hear his heart to pounding loudly against his eardrums. His eyes lost focus. He could feel the once warm room turn cold at her revelation. "I-I understand. I will not meddle in any of your activities."

"Meddle? Is that what you think this is?" The dragoness eyed him from the corner of her eyes. "It seems you misunderstood, guildmaster." she sent him the sweetest smile he had ever seen. "I want you to stop monitoring me."

He quickly nodded with a pale face.

"You've betrayed my trust Pluton-san. After I receive my Adamantine plate, I will no longer be staying in this city."

He nodded once again, clearly dejected. His plans to keep her in E-Rantel had failed spectacularly.

Suddenly, someone came crashing into the room panting for breath. Everybody else immediately turned their heads towards the newcomer, while Tiamat sat there, calm and composed, while sipping on her tea.

"What's the matter?" Ainzach stood up in alarm.

"I-It's terrible! The stampede, it's here!."

Hearing those words, the people in the room opened their mouths in shock and panic.

In front of Tiamat, Bellote's skin turned completely white, while Moknach's eyes expanded to twice their usual size.

She put away the tea and faced the adventurer who warned them.

"My, seems like there's not even enough time to escape." she smiled at the adventurer and stood up. "You over there, please bear witness." she asked him, and the adventurer tilted his head in confusion.

Tiamat tapped her staff on the ground and Igvarge woke up as if he had been sleeping the whole time.

"Igvarge-san, Bellato-san, Moknach-san, as well as the guildmaster, Pluton Ainzach. You all have requested me, Hannah Annafelowz, a Mythril ranked Adventurer, to subjugate the stampede, and protect the city as well as those who live inside it. The payment will be my promotion to Adamantine rank. Correct?"

Igvarge just looked at her, clearly confused at what was happening, while Bellato, Moknach, and Pluton, especially Pluton desperately nodded their heads in agreement.

She smiled. A smile so large and beautiful, that there wasn't a man in the room who wouldn't stare at her.

_'This is my win, Ainz!'_

"I accept your quest."


	11. CHAPTER 11: Nature of The Beast

**CHAPTER 11: Nature Of The Beast**

* * *

There were two routes leading into E-Rantel from Carne Village. The first and the most used route was from the south, eventually joining the main road leading to E-Rantel. Next was through the Forest of Tob, which at first glance may have seemed slower and more dangerous, but was surprisingly much safer, because bandits typically expected people to travel down the main road towards E-Rantel.

People who usually went through the forest were either suicidal, adventurers, or carrying something that was so precious from outside of E-Rantel to avoid being attacked by thieves

The entrance was usually filled with traffic because there were so many people from villages outside of E-Rantel who wanted to trade with merchants inside the city. Today however, the front entrance was quiet and barren. There was no one, not even the two guards who were guarding the iron gates into the city were to be seen.

Instead, the gates were closed shut and the people were all frantically running about.

They were all running away from the same place. Away from the front gates.

"Hurry up and get ready!"

"Get your ass up! C'mon, we have to go!"

People were all running amok, creating mass panic inside the city as they tried to get as far away from the main gate as possible.

Most of the guards and adventurers were helping people evacuate, directing them towards shelters and knocking on people's doors to make sure they all got out safely.

"Oi, hurry up and get out!" one adventurer hammered on one of the citizen's homes.

A man opened the door. His eyes were unfocused as he stuttered, completely bewildered at the transpiring events "W-We have to pack…"

"Forget about packing!" the adventurer raised his voice. "What they want is not your stuff, they want your life! Just bring what you need and leave as fast as possib-"

The adventurer's breath hitched as he saw a child by the door.

"D-daddy…" A child clung onto his father's pants, clearly on the verge of crying. A child no older than four, and didn't even come up to his father's knees.

Children, any child, could feel the fear of their parents. This one was no exception.

The father looked scared out of his wits, clearly at a loss for what to do. They just moved into E-Rantel four years ago, when their village was run over by the stampede. He and his pregnant wife were part of the very small percentage of those who survived.

They wanted to create a new chapter in their lives, and they did. Forgetting all their trauma and fears from four years ago, the wife birthed a boy into their small family. A family filled with warmth and happiness.

But that warmth was going to be taken away from him all over again.

"Move!" the adventurer knocked the man to the side, forcing himself into the house. Taking a leather bag, he quickly shoved essential items such as bread, cheese and three small jars of sauerkraut into the bag. He then moved to his wife who was frozen in fear in the kitchen. He grabbed the man's wife by the wrist and took her to the door, as well as giving her the bag filled with limited supply. "You gotta get out of here."

But the husband's feet were stuck to the ground. His feet trembled and his eyes unfocused. Clearly his soul wasn't here.

The adventurer screamed. "GO!"

The loud voice makes the husband seemed to come to his senses and ran out with his wife and children away from their new home.

Right now, most of the citizens had been evacuated to the heart of the Fortress City, and in a few minutes the outer residential area became a barren wasteland.

The rest of the guards were guarding the front gates, becoming meat shields to stall the monsters' assault.

This was their home. And they will do anything to protect it.

The adventurers, the hope of the city, geared up as well. Even though there was no quest asking for them to subjugate the stampede, they all knew that it was their duty as well as their only chance for revenge for their fallen friends and families.

A small army of Adventurers and guards were all waiting outside of the iron gate standing in a line formation that seemed to stretch across the whole front area of the city.

Those who could use healing magic were located at the very back, providing support to the frontliners. Archers were positioned right in front of them, followed up swordsmen and rogues who were defended by bulky vanguards; the typical lineup in any quest, just on a much larger scale.

They knew that the monsters would come from north of the city, from the Great Forest of Tob, and they waited with hearts full of fear.

Today might be the day they die.

They waited, and time ticked by slowly. The hands of the clock kept on moving, disregarding the people's feelings and prayers for time to turn back.

All kinds of adventurer from a mere copper plate to the great and strong gold plated adventurers stood there.

"Make way!" a shout was heard from behind them.

A team of Mythril ranked adventurers, Rainbow, parted the crowd and make their way to the front.

All present sighed in relief. At least a Mythril team was here. They would be alright.

That's right. The stampede was just a B-rank quest. With the guidance of seasoned veterans that were Mythril ranked adventurers, team Rainbow no less, they would come out of this battle alive.

Then more people followed behind team Rainbow.

Their eyes boggled in disbelief.

The Sky Wolves and Kralgra were also there to help.

"All the Mythril Adventurers are here!"

"We're safe!"

Morale skyrocketed among the rest of the adventurers and the guards.

Moknach, one of the most seasoned veteran adventurers turned his head when he heard that Bellato and Igvarge were also there, and acknowledged them with a nod of his head.

"Oi, listen up you mongrels!" Igvarge screamed at the lot. "This battlefield is no place for the weak! We adventurers, we will do all we can so that we can survive!" He raised his sword high up to the sky. "Destroy all those monsters until we're out of jobs!"

A deafening roar was the reply he got. The crowds were ready to rally, especially with the three mythril teams present. They knew they would defeat whatever was coming.

Suddenly, a scream erupted from the tower. "I-It's here!"

"Archers!" Moknach yelled. The archers who stood in the back pulled their strings taut with an arrow in hand. They waited with bated breaths.

Then the monsters walked into the clearing.

Trolls and Ogres, as well as small Goblins filled their view. From the looks of it, there were perhaps more than two hundred in total.

As soon as those monsters saw the humans lined up, they let out a large battle cry snarls and groans as they broke into a sprint straight towards the formation.

"FIRE!"

A hail of arrows rained down from the sky and fell upon the charging horde.

Many arrows missed, but most hit the monsters, who fell down in the field with a large thud. Especially the heavy Trolls and Ogres.

"We did it!" They shouted exuberantly. Perhaps this stampede wouldn't be so bad afterall.

"NOT YET!"

Then a booming sound was heard followed by the Goblins' cries

A large shadow appeared from the trees.

"N-No way…" one adventurer said out loud without realizing.

Brown colored demi-humans, about fifty in total, showed themselves from the edge of the forest. They were short, but everyone could see their powerful build and sharp talons on their feet and arms.

"Q-Quagoa!"

"W-Why are they here! They're supposed to be in Azerlisia Mountains!"

Quagoas were a dangerous enemy for weak Adventurers. Even though they had a slight advantage because the Quagoas were blind under the sun, the demi-humans had high physical resistances that deflected weak metallic weapons, making the copper and iron adventurers who used simple iron blades all but useless.

The Quagoas, without vision, started to attack blindly from wherever they heard sound.

The formation that the adventurers had made started to break apart as those with weak wills ran for their lives.

Metal clashed against metal and the grunts of war were heard even from a distance. Although the adventurers managed to finish off some of the monsters, they were still vastly outnumbered as monsters continuously poured out like a never ending waterfall from the forest.

The Quagoas also made things difficult since they attacked blindly. The adventurers never knew from which direction the attack was going to come from and would be quickly blown away.

Monsters swarmed over the fallen adventurers, their foul blood mixing with that of their adversaries. They mindlessly rushed at those who still had the will to resist and attacked ferociously, their minds completely ruled by instinct. Instinct was what drove them to attack, what drove them to survive, and what drove to butcher the adventurers before them.

That was the nature of the beast.

Moknach jumped high with the help of his team, and stuck an axe into the troll's head as he safely landed using the troll's body. Then he heard the whiz of an arrow passing by his left side near his face, and he heard the grunt of a goblin from behind him.

Moknach nodded at the archer who saved him and continued attacking.

The battlefield was brutal.

Monsters were coming in left and right. Ferocious and deadly in their numbers, but the Adventurers were not deterred.

To them this was their song of vengeance. For the adventurers who suffered many burdens and losses while their blood and hearts were tainted by these monsters, they felt that it was their duty to eradicate this horde and to defend their way of life.

But no matter how much they attacked, or how many monsters had fallen, it was a never ending stream of monsters...the _Stampede_.

Those who were capable of using magic were scattered around the battlefield. He could see shining runes dot the field as lightning struck the Quagoas. Arrows darted left and right, slaying smaller monsters and barely pricking the hides of tougher monsters which were dispatched by squads of swordsmen.

Grunts from both humans and monsters could be heard even by the villagers who were seeking shelter, and were that much louder on the battlefield.

The shirring sound of metal grinding against metal, the flitting of arrows left and right as the archers tried to avoid friendly fire, the gleam of spells being cast.

It was chaos, but it was controlled. Despite how the swordsmen all seemed to be in one desperate melee, each person looked out for those around them and guarded one another from sneak attacks. The mages seemingly tossed spells at random, but to the careful observer, they too worked together by combining spells to take down sturdier monsters .

Seeing monsters going down left and right, everyone had high hopes that they were going to win the battle.

Igvarge was fighting one of the Ogres, parrying its attacks and easily avoiding its clumsy movements. Despite his arrogance and all the rumors surrounding him, Moknach couldn't deny what he saw. Clearly, Igvarge had trained himself intensely and that showed in the battlefield.

"Don't give up!" Bellato hoarsely shouted. "We're almost finished."

The morale of the adventurers rose as they believed the end was in sight. With each passing minute, the amount of monsters were starting to decrease. Of the original two hundred, about a hundred monsters were still left on the battlefield.

But the monsters were not the only ones who suffered losses. Adventurers were starting to fall down one by one as they succumbed to fatigue or their injuries. The Stampede was always taxing due to how they were always vastly outnumbered.

The adventurers who were capable of using healing magic stayed behind, trying to mend the adventurers who were hurt. All sorts of injuries were taken by the adventurers, from broken ribs to sprained ankles. But none of the injuries sustained had been life threatening in any way.

However, most of them had run out of stamina, and if the battle continued on, they didn't know what they would do.

Way in front, away from the main gate, the Mythril teams were still leading the attack.

"Rising to Adamantine, tch!" Igvarge struck one of the trolls with a swing of a sword. "That bitch isn't even here!" he bellowed, frustrated.

"That's true." Bellato nodded in agreement. "We've defeated almost half of the stampede already and I have yet to see her…"

They couldn't help but notice her absence. Hannah Annafelowz was someone that stuck out in a crowd, especially with her white dress and silver hair against the regular brown and black. But they didn't see her anywhere.

"She must've ran away." Igvarge jumped up and with the help of his team members, managed to make the Ogre fall onto the grass. Igvarge jammed his sword in the monster's head, splitting it in two. "Coward!" he screamed in fury, his face splattered with the monster's blood and gray matter as he continued to hack away at the Ogre's corpse.

"We're almost done. Don't get distracted." Moknach warned them.

A troll and an ogre came together towards Moknach's direction, and he threw his axe at the troll's head and killed it instantly, refusing to allow it to regenerate. Then he ran towards the ogre and hacked at its leg, forcing the monster to its knees. He took his axe from the troll's dead body and disemboweled the howling ogre.

Igvarge whistled. "Damn old man, that's some skill you got there."

Moknach remained quiet as he tried to focus on defeating the rest of the monsters, but suddenly the temperature of the field dropped, and above him a shadow blanketed the field.

He slowly looked up, and his eyes widened in fear.

Igvarge and Bellato looked at Moknach and they looked up as well. Their mouths went slack in shock and their eyes almost popped out of their sockets. Even Igvarge dropped his sword to the ground.

The temperature of the battlefield dropped sharply as both monsters and adventurers stopped whatever they were doing to look up to the sky.

Above them were three Frost Dragons flying in slow circles. Their wings were a snowy white and their scales radiated a blue color that glittered in the sun. When one of the beasts exhaled, the difference in temperature causes them to see the mist of their own warm breath in faint clouds.

Most importantly was what came afterwards.

After the Frost Dragons showed themselves, other monsters started to come in. Barghests, giant snakes, spiders, and more flooded the battlefield and within seconds, another wave of monsters were rushing towards the helpless adventurers.

But none of them were paying attention to the next wave of monsters as their eyes remained glued to the sky.

"F-Frost Dragon!" one of the adventurers behind them screamed in abject terror.

As soon as the Frost Dragon was about to use its breath attack, the copper and iron plated adventurers started to run into the city to seek protection.

But they never thought one of them would do the unthinkable.

After a few of the low ranked adventurers fell back into the city, one of them had the audacity to lock the gates, leaving their comrades outside the city to fend for themselves.

Once the gates were shut, the guard rang the bell three times again, signaling that the citizens needed to evacuate as soon as they can and after he performed his duties, he ran away from the tower to join those seeking shelter.

As soon as the bell rang out, all semblance of restraint was banished from the people within the city. The crowd began to trample over each other in hopes of escaping the jaws of the monsters behind them. The lowly ranked copper adventurers also ran away with them in fear.

But the most dangerous part of being in such a crowd such as this was that the group moved too quickly in panic. They wanted to keep up with the people in the front in order to maximize their chances of surviving.

Their movement was controlled by the people at the front, and the people from the back only followed. As a result, the crowd clumped together in a dense mass towards the front.

It was at that moment, they all realized.

_Fear._

The Frost Dragon unleashed its bitter cold breath and in a few moments, the battlefield was a barren tundra.

Most of the adventurers were already put out of commission. They no longer had the stamina nor the power to deal with another wave. Moreover, they could not escape into the city since the gates were closed by the stupid copper plated adventurers who were selfish enough to save themselves at the expense of everybody else.

All that was left were some of the Adventurers who managed to erect makeshift barriers against the Dragon's frost breath. The Adventurers dwindled down until there were a mere five teams left. Less than forty people were still capable of resisting.

Less than forty people against another wave of the stampede, and they realized…

The odds were not in their favor.

"Open the gates, you coward!"

"Traitor!"

The enraged screams could be heard from across the entire field. Even the Mythril ranked teams who were quite a distance away from the main gates could hear the protests.

The gates needed to be opened so that the healers could quickly send their comrades to the temple before it was too late.

"The gate needs to be locked so that the monsters can't come in!" was their pathetic reply.

"What do you mean monsters?! There are Frost Dragons out there! We'll be doomed either way!"

"...sorry." and with that the person ran away into the city, leaving behind the ones left on the wrong side of the iron gates.

The sounds of disagreement grew louder and louder.

Borg whispered to his team. "We need to do something…"

The leaders of the Mythril teams survived the breath attack, as well as their party members. However, they knew that this battle would be their last.

"Another wave of monsters," Bellato said to no one in particular. "This is insane!"

The numbers of monsters swelled yet again. Moreover, there were now Frost Dragons in front of them.

This was the first time there were this many waves in a stampede, and in such a large number. Soon, their faces were filled with despair and disbelief as they lost all hope of victory

The Frost Dragons took in another deep breath, this time, all three at once. There was no way they could block three breath attacks simultaneously.

"No." Igvarge muttered. His muttering slowly became screams as he continued repeating the same word."Nononononono! I won't die here!" and he blindly charged the dragon.

"Igvarge!" Moknach screamed. "FOOL!"

Igvarge charged in at high speed towards one of the dragons, but none of his team followed, for they knew that his attempt was futile. Even before he could swing his sword, one of the dragons swiped him away with its tail.

"That idiot!" Bellato raged at Igvarge out loud, and immediately order the thief on his team to quickly grab Igvarge and fall back. What Igvarge did was the epitome of idiocy. Blindsided by his emotions in the middle of the battle. This is why no matter how hard he tried, he will never rise to Adamantine.

The Frost Dragons unleashed their breaths once again, and they knew they were finished.

Moknach crosses his axes together to guard himself and closed his eyes.

But the biting chill never came.

Curious, he opened his eyes slightly. He would never forget the view in front of him.

The Silver Priestess was blocking all three of the Frost Dragons' frost blasts with magic. An invisible shield that was as large as the dragon held their impending doom at bay as their savior sweated bullets, struggling to fend off the frosty breath.

All that was left from the Frost Dragons' ferocious blizzard were measly chill breezes.

"I'm sorry I'm late."

Hannah Annafelowz, the Silver Priestess had finally arrived.

"Moknach-san, get away from here and bring the injured adventurers inside the city."

"W-What are you talking about, there's no way you can defeat all of them by yourself!" Moknach pleaded. He had seen far too many overconfident adventurers die young, and he would do anything to stop it from ever happening again.

The Priestess turned her face towards him and smiled. A warm smile without a hint of fear. He thought he could even see a gleam of playfulness in those amethyst eyes.

"I can't," she pointed towards the sky, "But he can."

An earth-shaking roar bursted from the sky, and a dragon that dwarfed the Frost Dragons appeared. Its rumbling was like thunder as light and heat shone from its maws and suddenly a pillar of pure white flames shot out from the Priestess's dragon, rendering one of the Frost Dragon incapable of fighting anymore as it was burned to crisps.

The rest of the adventurers could only watch in shock.

"I can handle this, Moknach-san."

Moknach just stood there, unmoving.

Bellato tried to reason with her. "B-But-"

"Go!" she spoke with the weight of authority lining her voice. "Carry the injured with you into the city! I told you I'll protect everyone, and that includes the two of you."

Moknach looked back at the battlefield. Nearly all of the adventurers present were injured. Even though their injuries were not life-threatening, their morale was crushed. In the state they were in, they would not be able to cooperate with their teams effectively nor be able to fully utilize their abilities. He saw their blank eyes and knew that they could not continue like this for much longer.

They've lost their fighting spirit.

Losing their spirit was worse than sustaining injuries. Physical injuries could be healed in a fight. But losing spirit meant that they were no longer focused on the battle.

He saw their crippled forms strewn across the field, some with their bones sticking out, others who were literally beaten black and blue, and saw their comrades desperately trying to drag towards the relative safety of the gates.

Moknach nodded in understanding. "Got it."

"Moknach-san!" Bellato raised his tone in unbelief. There was no way he was going to let a single adventurer fight against this horde of monsters.

"Let's go! Bring as many people as you can!" Moknach quickly gave orders to his team. Bellato stood there in incredulity, but in the end he relented and ordered the same to his team.

"I assume you know how we can open those gates, Hannah-san?" Moknach asked.

The Priestess grinned as she nodded at the city gates. "Look again."

He turned back and saw the team Hissing Vipers scaling the walls with a rope, and with the help of fellow adventurers, they finally managed to get inside the city and opened the gates.

"I was actually planning on asking my dragon to throw you inside the city. Thankfully for you, they acted faster than me."

Moknach looked back at team Hissing Vipers who is helping other adventurer scaled the wall as some of them move towards the tower to open the gate, and he grunted in acknowledgement. "They're good adventurers."

"They are," she agreed.

"Are you sure you can handle all of this by yourself?"

She turned her back to him and ran towards the nearest monster, her voice ringing out with piercing clarity.

"Watch me."

He smiled in relief. Throughout his whole life working as an adventurer, he could differentiate pride and arrogance from self confidence. The Priestess's attitude was definitely the latter.

In a powerful booming voice, he ordered. "Fall back! Everyone to the gates!" and in his heart he prayed that the Priestess would be safe from harm.

"After you're done evacuating everyone, close the gates!" the Priestess shouted at him, throwing scorching streams of fire at the incoming spiders and Barghests.

"What? What about you?"

The monsters in front of her burned down, and she turned towards the ogres, "Make sure everyone is safe first, I can protect myself just fine. Besides, I'm not alone."

From the corner of his eye, he could see her companion is taking on three Frost Dragons at the same time. Claws against claws, tooth against tooth.

Finally believing that he could leave the rest to the Silver Priestess and her dragon, he made sure he and his team were the last people who stood outside the gate and controlled the evacuation process for the rest of the adventurers. After everyone was inside, he asked the Hissing Vipers who stood at the tower to close the gate.

Then the gate was shut.

On one side, were adventurers who are beaten up, scared and tired, and on the other was a lone woman, holding an entire horde back.

Almost everyone who watched the scene that day would not forget it.

The stampede, this stampede in particular seemed to be set up so that any adventurer would be massacred. The fact that she chose to fight on her own had to mean she was insane! She couldn't possibly be thinking of defeating three frost dragons and hundreds of monsters at the same time.

"A b-bunch more came out!" one of the adventurers who was spectating the whole thing from the tower stuttered out in warning.

"Even B-class monsters are a threat when they're packed together like this!"

"Does she really mean to take all of them on by herself?!"

"She does," amidst all of the confusion and fear, Moknach's voice rang out. "She took a private quest to defeat the stampede just earlier this morning…she means it," he looked again into the distance beyond the iron gate.

Antonios smirked at Moknach, "Of course! Look at her," he pointed out and their attention turned away from the conversation to look at her back. They could see a small smile and the sheer confidence that she exuded.

"But will she be alright?" one asked in concern. "She's by herself after all…"

Antonios clenched his fist. If he could run to help her, he would, but he was already wounded despite his restored leg. "I'm sure she'll get through it," Antonios tried to convince himself. "I believe in her."

The Priestess got into her battle stance as she jumped away to dodge incoming attacks from the remaining ogres. The ogres hit the ground with such force that a visible crater remained. The Silver Priestess moved with fluid grace as she weaved in between the monsters' attacks.

"『Minor Flare』" she raised both her arms. An omni-directional spell with a short cast-time, it was a deadly damage spell, especially for the fourth tier, that immediately incinerated most of the monsters in her vicinity. All monsters that did not die in the initial blast quickly died from the burn debuffs inflicted on them.

"A-amazing!" one spectator watched in awe. The low level monsters such as goblins, barghests, and spiders immediately died from the attack.

"That's crazy tactical skill…" Bellato commented.

Moknach nodded his head in agreement. "Amazing that someone so young could quickly make an effective strategy in such a dire situation."

The rest of the adventurers heard the two Mythril ranked adventurer talk amongst themselves.

"What are you talking about? Isn't she just trying to demolish them all at once?" a curious adventurer asked.

Bellato answered swiftly, "No. By casting an omni-directional attack, she learned the responses, abilities, and defensive capabilities of each type of monster in an instant. With that, she will able to calculate what kind of attack works best against each different kind of monster."

True to what the Mythril adventurer said, she immediately expelled a gout of flame imbued with lightning to bring down the Quagoas, and in an instant, the Quagoas fell down, electrocuted and singed.

If they got too close, she beated them away with her staff. Moknach was amazed at the incredible toughness of the staff, as he watched it deal heavy damage to the monsters near her.

Her dragon mowed down one of the Frost Dragons with its teeth and the other ones through its claws.

The sound of its deafening roar could be heard everywhere, and the adventurers watched the battle of the century up close. The battle of dragons.

While her dragon held aerial superiority, she dominated the ground.

Countless monsters lay dead among the blades of grass.

For monsters that were far away, she shot deadly fire spells, and attacked closed ranged monsters with her staff, breaking their bones and rendering them unable to counterattack.

Unexpectedly, the giant snakes and barghests who managed to escape from her initial fire attack launched a simultaneous tackle and she was thrown away by their attack, leaving behind a trail of dust.

The adventurers could only watch with grim expressions. Of course there was no way a human would escape that many monsters unscathed.

Then one of the giant spiders threw its web at her, and she shouted out a spell, its name lost in the roaring of the monstrosities surrounding her. Suddenly she was enveloped with a small golden sphere, a defensive spell, to protect her against the attack.

When the dust settled, the people behind the iron gates could see the state of the Silver Priestess.

Specks of blood decorated her silver hair, dulling its usual brilliance. Her long white dress was ripped up to her thighs and dyed in crimson, a testament to the slaughter she went through. Moreover, she had received countless injuries and bruises all over her body.

She was attacked countless times, but she never failed to stand back up against the enemies of humanity.

Everyone watching was fiercely cheering, begging her to survive the fight.

One of the monsters, a Giant Snake took her by surprise and bit her leg, injecting it with poison.

"Hannah-sama!" Antonios screamed in anguish.

She quickly bashed the snake's skull open with her staff. Tearing off part of her dress to make a bandage, she tied the white cloth around her leg, to stop the poison from travelling through her entire body.

They wanted to help but they were in no condition to.

This filled them with a sense of shame and gratefulness.

This adventurer, this lone woman, was currently fighting for all of them combined.

Today was a day they wouldn't be able to forget.

The day the stampede hit the city with ungodly force and fear gripped the hearts of the adventurers.

That day, the stampede turned into something more.

_A Pandemonium_.

They knew that if she hadn't come to their rescue, the city would be nothing but rubble and countless citizens would have died.

Civilians were cheering behind the iron gate, giving words of encouragement for the lone woman on the battlefield.

As she sustained wound after wound, the Holy Priestess who should have fallen, danced beautifully, just like a petal drifting in the wind. A dance of death.

The adventurers wept tears of joy.

"Th-there's no way…"

"I-I don't believe my eyes."

She single-handedly vanquished hundreds of monsters and cleared the entire Pandemonium.

Her dragon munched on one Front Dragon with its teeth and stomped on the others with its feet. Her body was beaten, bloodied, and broken.

There, they all realized. This was the true extent of her power.

When she raised her staff high against the sky, the sound of adventurers cheering for her was deafening. The earth quaked at their exultation and the sun shone on her as if to set her apart from regular mortals.

The whole nightmare was finally over.

But those cheers soon died down when they saw the Silver Priestess point the tip of her staff towards a single shadow peeking out from the forest.

A cloaked woman, with elaborate horns and a red tail walked out from the dark forest and out into the sunlight. They all assumed it was a woman with its long red hair and feminine body, but they could not be sure since her face was covered by a metal mask with gold markings.

Looking at this, they somehow knew that in front of the Priestess was the _demon _behind the Pandemonium.

The demon raised both of her hands in front of her, and even from the gates people could see the paleness of the demon's skin and her long sharp red nails, while the Priestess warily went into her battle stance.

But the demon clapped.

She clapped, slowly, sarcastically, mockingly congratulating the Priestess on winning the battle, and then the demon turned its back, swallowed by the darkness of the forest, never to be seen again.

The Priestess waited with staff in hand, but after standing there for a few minutes, nothing seemed to happen.

The Priestess relaxed her stance, and she limped towards her dragon. As she gave it pets and kisses as a way of thanks, they could hear the dragon rumbling against her.

She whispered something to the dragon, something they couldn't hear, but as soon as she finished, the Dragon spread its wings and flew away, carrying the corpses of the Frost Dragons with him. One in its jaws, and two with its claws.

She watched until her dragon disappeared into the horizon, and when it did, she limped back towards the gate.

The gate slowly rose to let her in.

But just a few meters away, they noticed that her knees were wobbling and her eyes were unfocused. Soon, her legs buckled and she fell down on the grass.

"Hannah-sama!" Antonios hoarsely screamed.

As soon as the adventurer saw that, they immediately ran towards her.

"Get the healers quick!" Moknach ordered.

Antonios was the first person who reached the Priestess and upon reaching her he knelt down, her head on his knees as he held her fragile shoulders, cradling her in his arms.

Soon, they passed her through the crowds of people as gently as they could.

"Careful, she's a hero," one of them said, and they took the sentence to heart.

Truly, this woman was a hero. A hero that they didn't deserve.

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻

At noon, Ainz and Narberal arrived at the Fortress City.

But he was shocked at what he saw the discrepancy between the reports he reviewed and the sight before him.

He heard that the city was closely guarded because it contained storehouses for combat rations and that there were numerous shopkeepers in several plazas where stall owners energetically promoted their wares to the people walking by.

The city's rowdy and energetic atmosphere should've lasted until the sun went down.

Instead, he saw injured adventurers lining the streets of E-Rantel as their friends tried to heal them.

He wondered what happened.

He went inside the adventurer's guild and the number of injured adventurers he saw kept on increasing. Some of them were resting on long wooden benches as their team-mates patched them up with makeshift bandages. They eyed him and Nabe but didn't do anything.

He walked to the table where the receptionist stood. "Excuse me."

"Yes, what can I help you with?" she replied.

"I saw a bunch of adventurers injured on the streets, could you perhaps tell me what happened?"

The receptionist looked at him as if he had grown a second head. "You don't know?"

"Sadly, I've just arrived into the city and I'm here to register as an adventurer. So no, I don't know anything." he swiftly replied.

"A hero has descended upon this city." she simply explained.

"Hero? Like an Adamantine Adventurer?"

"Yes. Truly the might of an Adamantine Adventure…" she said, unfocused, as if in a trance.

"A hero...huh." Ainz muttered. Another competitor in his and Tiamat's bet. This would be hard. He needed to investigate more about this new hero.

"Does the hero have anything to do with the injured adventurers?" he asked.

"Injured adventurers?" she absent-mindedly questioned, but quickly realized what he meant. "Oh! No, not at all! She saved all of them, without them they'd have died, that's for sure."

Ainz quickly digested this newly found information. "She? The Adamantine adventurer is a woman?"

Ha ha...it couldn't be, right?

Before the receptionist could answer his question, someone hollered from the second floor. "Oi, quickly call the Lizzie Bareare!" he yelled to the adventurers at the lobby, and almost immediately, the adventurers scrambled outside the guild. Most were probably searching for the woman in question.

"W-what happened?" one adventurer down in the lobby asked the man on the second floor.

"Just find Lizzie Bareare as quick as you can!" he bellowed.

"Noted!" one team, he presumed they were a team since they were all wearing the same colored cloak, ran out of the adventurer's guild.

"Antonios," the receptionist interjected. "Is she alright?"

Most of the adventurers had the same question. They waited with bated breath for the man on the second floor to answer the receptionist's questions. Their eyebrows furrowed in worry and fear, and Ainz's curiosity grew. Just what was happening…

"None of the healing spells are working. Thankfully she's still alive, but she isn't waking up." the man quickly explained, and he ran up the stairs back to the room on the second floor.

He could hear gasps of shock and panic all across the adventurers' guild.

Ainz raised his hand, "Perhaps I could help." this was the perfect opportunity for him to dig for information. "I have a healing potion."

"You do? Thank god! Please follow me, we might not have much time."

Ainz walked up the stairs following the receptionist with a chilling sense of foreboding. They turned the corner on the second floor into the room the Adamantine adventurer was in and Ainz almost stumbled in his steps.

The small room she was in was only furnished with a wooden bed and a rickety desk, and laying on said bed was none other than his dear friend Tiamat, covered in blood and bruises.

"Momon-sa—n," Nabe eyes widened and she whispered fearfully. "Isn't that…"

Ainz's emotional suppressor worked overtime pushing aside the fear and _anger _that clouded his mind as he pushed the man aside and rushed to Tiamat's bedside.

'_Impossible…! How could there be anything out there to have put her in such a state?!' _Ainz frantically pulled out a healing potion from his inventory and gently moved her head upwards to pour the potion down her lips.

The person in front of him did not resemble his comrade, but he knew this was Tiamat. They had the same body structure, and the same face. The only difference was her hair and the absence of her horns and tail.

As the red potion was slowly emptied from the bottle, Ainz looked over her injuries. Her clothes that she made with a『Create Greater Item』scroll were ripped up to her thighs and the rest of her dress was dyed a blue-gray color, that he assumed was monster blood. On her left leg was a bite mark and a makeshift bandage, and lacerations were all over her body.

Once the potion was consumed, Ainz anxiously waited for a reaction. She remained as still as a corpse.

YGGDRASIL potions had an immediate effect and no cooldowns, so players could always reach for their HP Potions as long as they had it in their inventory.

However, he didn't see the wounds mend and the bruises didn't disappear.

"『Detect Life Essence』," Ainz muttered under his breath.

A faint aura of green suddenly appeared around Tiamat. The health potion didn't seem to have recovered any HP but at least she was alive.

Ainz quickly drew a small breath. A breath of relief, but the rest of the people in the room thought differently.

"U-um, Momon-san? Is she going to be alright?" Antonios nervously asked.

The black warrior didn't get up from where he knelt, and in a small whisper he said, "Get out…"

"Momon-sa—n?" Nabe reached out to him.

"Get out." he nearly shouted.

"W-What are you talking about? Is she alright? The potion you gave to her is different from ours. What did you give her?" a stream of questions flowed from Antonios's mouth. Currently, only he and Borg were in the room with the Silver Priestess. They had helped carried her to one of the emergency rooms at the adventurer's guild, and now this shady person was going to ask them to leave? Fat chance.

Nabe looked like she was prepared to attack him at any moment. Ainz shook his head slightly and Nabe relaxed, albeit slightly.

"Potions didn't work, so I'm going to try my hand with a healing spell." Ainz lied through his teeth. "However, the ritual of the healing spell must be kept secret. I hope you understand."

"No, there's no way I'm going to leave you alone with—" Borg put his hand on Antonios's shoulder, halting him in the process and with a small 'tch' he relented.

"Nothing is working Antonios, she's been like this for a few hours now." Borg softly said to his comrade as he gripped his shoulder. "I doubt Lizzie's potion will work either. This might be her only chance." give her the same chance she gave you were the words left unsaid by Borg.

Antonios gritted his teeth. He knew that feeling well enough, the feeling of hopelessness and despair when nothing seemed to be working, so he nodded grudgingly and turned his back from his Goddess.

"I won't do anything to her, you can rest assured." Ainz impatiently explained. He was sick of these humans getting in the way. "Nabe, please guard the door." he ordered.

"Yes, Momon-san." she walked behind the two Adventurers and shut the door behind her.

Almost immediately, Ainz casted a silencing spell inside the room.

Without warning, a blurry portal seemed to break through the air in the room, as if ripping it apart, and it grew into an oval shape large enough to fit several people. The oval contained red and black spirals, as a somewhat blurry『Gate』appeared, and from it, an obscured familiar red-head who was using an invisibility scroll finally showed herself to Ainz.

"Eh, Momo-chan?" she faltered a bit after seeing his disguise to check whether it was truly him or not. "What are you doing here?" she said out loud in surprise, dispelling the scroll entirely.

Ainz took a large step and stood in front of her. Tiamat looked up at him, eyes blinking. He knocked her over the head.

"Oi! What the hell are you doing?!" Tiamat brought her hands up to her hand.

Suddenly, he brought her into a crushing hug. He was relieved, so relieved. He had for one terrible moment, thought her defensive stats wouldn't work in the New World, and if not for his emotional suppression he probably would have burned the city down to ashes in anger.

"Uhh...Suzuki?" she asked using his real name, concerned with the sudden change of attitude he was displaying. "You alright?"

"I believe that I should be asking you that." he replied letting her go from his hold once he knew she was safe and in good health. "What was this all about?"

"Ho ho, this is me winning the bet, dear Momo-chan." she said haughtily with her hands on her hips.

"Explain." he demanded, he has had enough of her playfulness. One heart attack was enough for today. Or whatever his heart was now.

"So," she moved to the bedside and sat near her disguise's head. "Meet my clone. I made her using 『Advanced: Ragnarok's Scale』. Pretty isn't she? She looks just like Daenerys Targaryen from that old tv show Game of Thrones."

"I knew it was a clone, I checked using 『Detect Life Essence』." Ainz lied. He had completely forgotten about Tiamat's item, and in his panic, did not check whether or not the body was a clone. 『Clone』 was a 5th tier spell that could be accessed with specific job and racial classes. In this case, Tiamat's 『Ragnarok's Scale』, an item that could only be used by players with a large amount of levels in draconic racial classes, not only gave her the power to disguise herself, but also the ability to create a clone of herself. However, said clone was extremely limited in the skills they could use and was all but useless in PvP.

These clones could only be level fifty at the highest, with the exact same build as the original and only half the power. Since Tiamat had high defensive stats, her clones would be absolute meatshields. On par with his Dark Young summons from 『Iä Shub-Niggurath』if she buffed it with her racial classes. But her clones could only inherit up to fifty of her class levels even after sacrificing a third of her mana. All in all, her clone was just a meat shield without any decent attack skills.

"How did this clone manage to get so damaged?" the state of her clone was truly something to be worried about. An entity that could cause this much damage to a level fifty defense oriented summon was something they had to watch out for.

"I figured out that I could disable her defensive stats and only buffed her with 『Aegis』so she didn't sustain too much damage. What you're looking at is a level forty me with no defensive stats and abysmal attack power." she gave him a bright smile. "What better way to get promoted than making it seem like you fought hard, while leaving the battlefield in a natural way…"

Ainz sighed and put his hand on his face. He could feel a massive headache incoming even though he only had a skull for a head. How someone could bring so much trouble and invoke so many emotions within him, he had no idea.

"You caused all those injuries to those Adventurers?" he asked in a monotone voice.

"Well, you could say that. I indirectly caused their suffering is more like it. But it's alright, after this I'll make sure to give basic healing to each and every one of them as an apology." she tried to console him. "Anyways, I won the bet~" she said in a sing-song voice.

"How…"

"One of the skills of God Beast,『 Åsgårdsreien』, controls low-levelled monsters below level sixty. I basically hypnotized them and they did whatever I wanted them to. By the way I brought three Frost Dragons as gifts; after Aura tames them you can do whatever you want with it." she said nonchalantly.

Ainz sighed yet again in exasperation, thinking about what he would do with Frost Dragons while Tiamat was the complete opposite. She was cheerfully taking off all her clone's clothing while humming a tune under her breath. "Don't look." Tiamat warned him with a stink eye, and Ainz turned his back, sighing for the third time in one day.

Tiamat undressed herself and put her imperial red dress in her inventory. After she finished peeling the tattered Priestess dress from her clone, she put it on, so that her story would be consistent with what happened. There was no logic going out of the room with a perfectly ironed dress after an intense battle.

After she was done, she dismissed her clone, and it disappeared into the wind just like mist.

"You know, this means you're not winning the bet." Ainz said, back still turned.

"Pshh, what are you talking about Momo-chan?" she dismissed him with a wave of her hand. "I guess you didn't know huh? I received a private quest from the leader of three Mythril ranked adventurers as well as the guildmaster himself stating that if I defeated the stampede I would immediately receive my Adamantine plate. At this point there's no way you can catch up to me in this race, so it's my win." she bragged happily. "You can turn around now."

He crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't think you won," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, you just don't want to admit I beat you at your own game Momo-chan. You're such a killjoy…"

"You definitely didn't win anything. The bet is off because you cheated."

"Cheated? You didn't say anything about manipulating our way to Adamantine, which I'm sure you're about to do as well!" she said in disbelief. How could Ainz be such a hard-headed Overlord? Just by looking at the results, it was obvious that she won, so why did he keep on insisting that she cheated?

Christ, sometimes speaking to Ainz felt like she was talking to a brick wall.

"Don't you remember? I said you shall not use any of your draconic racial levels and only use your one dragon summon," although monotone, his voice carried a hint of playfulness to it. "You just admitted to me that you've used『 Åsgårdsreien』didn't you?"

Tiamat just stood there facing him, her mouth gaping wide in disbelief, and the twinkle of playfulness in her amethyst eyes vanished instantly. She brought her hands to her face, covering it in shame, as she landed on the bed with a floof. "I can't believe I forgot about that, I'm such an idiot!"

Throughout the whole bet, Ainz had already stated since the beginning that she was not supposed to use any of her racial classes, which was why Ainz had insisted she was cheating. Now it all made sense.

She thought she was being clever, but she realized she had been a big doofus.

She buried her face into the pillow on the bed. "Nuuuuuuuuuu…"

All that effort and pent up emotion while dealing with quests, sacrificing hours of sleep to finish all fifty-three quests, all of it just went to waste.

Ainz scoffed at her light-heartedly. Her antics were always interesting, but he couldn't believe she forgot about that part of their bet. He assumed she was too focused on getting to adamantine as fast as possible.

"Hold up." She sat up on the bed, her eyes widened in realization. "That means you set me up from the beginning. You knew I went to the Azerlisia Mountains didn't you? You even encouraged me to go!"

He sighed again, "You only realized that now? I thought you were smart enough to have realized from the beginning."

Tiamat gasped in disbelief. "You set me up to fail from the beginning…You genius asshole."

'_The battle is over before it begins_,' the famous line from Punitto Moe's strategy book: PKing for Dummies. For her, it was truly over from the beginning.

There was no way in hell she could rise to Adamantine just by being a support healer. Ainz made sure of that since the beginning.

"I'll take that as a compliment," If Ainz could have smiled he would. This conversation reminded him a lot of Nazarick's golden days, and as his heart was filled with happiness, his emotional suppression activated again, and he clicked his nonexistent tongue in disappointment at the loss of such an ecstatic feeling. "Congratulations on ultimately failing, the bet is off," he decided.

He cut her some slack, because in the end her plan was truly ingenious. With little effort, she portrayed herself as a capable and caring adventurer in the span of a few days.

A part of him was slightly disappointed in himself, because he thought it would be much more fun for them to go on adventures together.

'_Perhaps in the near future…'_

"Since you're all fine, I'm going to head out." Ainz turned towards the door. "Oh, and congratulations on getting to Adamantine as well. I'll make sure I rise faster than you." What Ainz said was not a promise, but a statement, and Tiamat knew he would be hell bent on making it happen.

She sighed, clearly disappointed with herself, and waved him off. "Hh, yeah yeah. See you at Nazarick." she said as she laid back down on the bed and covered her eyes with the back of her hand.

Before Ainz left the room, he looked back at her form once again. Her dress was in tatters and no bruises were to be seen, a fact that made him exhale in relief. But one thing had been bothering him from the beginning.

The shortness of her dress.

Since it was all but destroyed and she had to wear it to keep up with appearances, he still felt that her dress was way too short and showed an uncomfortable amount of her thighs.

The length of her leg was longer than the length of her torso, giving her a slender appearance. Her ankle was thin and fragile. Her calves were soft, white, and smooth, like that of a sheltered heiress. His eyes moved up to her thighs; they had just the right amount of fat, making it seem plump and shapely, while her calves were lean and thin.

Somehow, this irked him.

He unclasped his red cloak and covered her legs with it.

"Make sure you go out wearing this." he said a bit louder than he intended.

"Shoot, it's too short isn't? Thanks Momo-chan!" and with that he left the room.

He held his head with his hands. Today is gonna be a long day…

(ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻

The Six Cardinals sat around a round table in the meeting room. The room was dimly lit by flickering candles and the glass panes only let a small amount of light into the room. Shadows obscured the Cardinals' faces, but it wasn't like he needed to see their faces to identify them anyways.

To the far left was Berenice Nagua Santini, the Cardinal of Fire. The sole female Cardinal amongst them.

Ginedine Delan Guelfi, the Cardinal of Water. The wisest and the oldest.

Dominic Ihre Partouche, the Cardinal of Wind. The holy warrior of the Sunlight Scripture during his golden age.

Raymond Zarg Lauransan, The Cardinal of Earth, as well as the commander of the Six Scriptures, and a former member of the fabled Black Scripture much like himself. He had heard that the entire Sunlight Scripture was missing in action while they were on an assassination mission. Even to this day, no one knew the fate of the Sunlight Scripture members

It was like they had disappeared from this world.

Next was Yvon Jasna Dracrowa, the Cardinal of Light. The high ranked divine magic user.

And to his far right was Maximilian Oreio Lagier, the Cardinal of Darkness, who previously worked as a priest from the Judiciary.

Only the highest and the most exalted of the Theocracy were allowed in this inviolable sanctum.

"Let us begin the meeting," the Cardinal of Earth, Raymond Zag Lauransan began to speak. "Our first topic is the Dragon Kingdom, as well as the Elf Country."

These topics were regular points in their meetings.

Not a lot of people knew all the details of ongoing events, and most what people heard about the Slane Theocracy was just hearsay.

But here, in this very sanctum, was where all decisions with regards to the Theocracy and humanity as a whole were made and agreed to.

Dominic spoke out. "What's there that needs to be discussed?"

Raymond patiently went on. "As you all know, the Sunlight Scripture has been missing for a couple of weeks. The Windflower Scripture has found no trace of bodies or corpses nor have me received any information about their whereabouts or well being. But we do know that the Sunlight Scripture failed to assassinate Gazef Stronoff. With such a low number of troops, I don't think we can honor our agreement with the Dragon Kingdom to annihilate the beastmen."

"What are you saying? There is no way the powerful Sunlight Scripture was defeated. They were able to survive the fight against Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra of the Blue Roses during the conflict dealing with the demi-human village within the Re-Estize Kingdom."

The group nodded one after the other.

Raymond quickly replied. "We're not denying the fact that the Sunlight Scripture is the strongest out of the Six Scriptures, the fact remains unchanged that they're currently missing. Even Thousand Miles Astrologer couldn't pinpoint their location because something broke her monitoring mirror."

"This could be a problem…" muttered the sole female cardinal. "The Dragon Kingdom expects us to eradicate the beastmen, how are we going to solve this problem?"

Suddenly a heated debate between the Cardinals broke out in the small sanctum.

That was until a brief clapping of hands cooled it down.

"What was the last thing she saw through the mirror?" Ginedine asked curiously.

He kneeled in front of them and knew that they were asking this particular question for him to answer. "According to what is written on the report, they could only see one person. Presumably a demon…"

_How troublesome_. Everyone thought to themselves, even if none said it out loud. But the presence of another demon could be disastrous if left alone.

"Do you have any other report on this...demon?"

"A thousand apologies, however, there is only one report in particular that had been addressing the demon in question."

To this he stood from his position and distributed a thick record. Maximilian took it and passed it to his right. After the report had been passed around, he went back to kneel beneath the Cardinals while the Cardinals took the records and studied them.

After a few minutes they stopped at the last piece of paper, the newest technology of the Theocracy. After years of hard work and research, they had finally managed to create a thin paper, much thinner than parchment, and so much cheaper to produce.

The room was filled with the rustling of papers as they had the same stiff expressions and their faces slowly grew pale.

And as though to represent each and every Cardinal in the room, the Cardinal of Darkness shouted. His jaws gaped wide in disbelief as his glasses fell onto the carpet. But he didn't seem to care when faced with the news before him.

"Impossible! How could anything like this possibly happen?!"

He waited until the Cardinal quieted down, and after a few seconds had passed, he finally responded. "The reports given to you had been re-written at least five times before it landed in your hand, My Lords. I personally had been researching the things written on the report, and all of it had turned out to be accurate. The stampede that was supposed to happen once a decade happened again within a span of four years just three days ago."

The Cardinal closed his mouth shut at his reply.

"Is this actually real?" asked Raymond.

"Yes. the demon who instigated the stampede, no the _pandemonium_, is definitely the demon who last met the Sunlight Scripture."

With a painful grimace, they all looked back at the papers they were holding. If the reports were accurate, then they were dealing with a being much stronger than the Evil Gods of the past. A demon who was able to lead a horde straight out of a nightmare.

Then the Cardinal of Water flipped through the report he was holding. "Fifty goblins, seventy trolls, fifty- seven ogres, sixty quagoas, thirty giant snakes, eighty bhargests, seventy seven spiders, and to top it off, three frost dragons. Almost five hundred monsters is it? This...pandemonium," the word sounded strange in his mouth but he continued, "They were all defeated by one person?"

"Yes. her name is Hannah Annafelowz, they call her the Silver Priestess. On the day she arrived into the city, she was immediately evaluated at Mythril rank because of her dragon companion. Within three days, she had managed to finish a total of fifty-three quests, and is the creator of the _tears of the sea_, and within the next day she and her dragon managed to defeat about five hundred monsters in total by herself. On top of that, after her wounds were healed, she proceeded to offer her healing services to the injured adventurers. Now, she is an Adamantine adventurer that is hailed as the saviour of E-Rantel." he answered with precision.

He was met with several defeated sighs.

The Cardinal of Earth replied. "As long as she's defending mankind, then we have no problem with that."

His sentence was well received as the rest of the Cardinals nodded their heads in agreement. "Keep an eye on her," the Cardinal ordered him.

"Yes, My Lord."

"Then, we shall move on to the next agenda." The Cardinal of Earth said out loud. "The Miko Princess of Earth died in a strange explosion and the Crown of Wisdom has been stolen."

"Yes, we presume this is the work of the former member of the Black Scripture, Clementine. Apparently she worked with Khajiit Dale Badantel in the secret shrine under the great cemetery of E-Rantel to raise the undead. But we found out afterwards that the Crown of Wisdom was destroyed as its remains were left on the shrine itself."

"Who stopped Khajiit and Clementine?" Berenice asked.

"It was a new adventurer team under the name Darkness. They are comprised of two people, a skilled black warrior and a mage who was capable of using sixth tier magic. We heard that the Black Warrior Momon saved Nfirea Bareare who was kidnapped by Clementine in order to use his talent to use the Crown of Wisdom in Khajiit's ritual of death. Moreover, the mage had also managed to defeat two Skeletal Dragons. Because of this, they rose to Mythril in one day." he recited perfectly.

"How dangerous," mused Yvon. "Two more superb adventurers just pop out of nowhere."

Raymond nodded his head in agreement. "Then we will monitor these adventurers, and if we find anything suspicious, we shall end them. That is all."

With that the meeting came to a close.

* * *

**A/N: Whew, writing battle scenes is hard, what do you think **_**hackslashbash**_**? By the way, a big shout out to **_**Ie-maru**_** for figuring out the plot in advance. You're awesome. To be honest, I'm just happy Tia could finally meet Ainz again. Their conversations are like three chapters apart...**

**hackslashbash: It really has been awhile since we've had Bone Daddy make an appearance. Anyways, we'll be working on improving our fight scenes in preparation for some pretty interesting battles in the chapters to come. We hope you continue to enjoy reading our story!**


	12. CHAPTER 12: Home

**CHAPTER 12: Home**

* * *

**A/N: We have a special treat for this chapter :) we hope you enjoy it.**

**WARNING: Cute twins, cute dragons, cute Nigredo. This whole chapter is one big fluffball. I hold no responsibilities over fluff allergies. You have been warned. Oh, and this chapter is basically filler. Still canon though. Sorry not sorry.**

* * *

Tiamat looked up at the wooden ceiling of her room in the guild while laying on the bed provided.

She sighed in exasperation. She still couldn't believe how stupid she was for not paying closer attention when Ainz was outlining the rules of the bet.

Perhaps she could have won if she had paid more attention?

No, that wasn't possible. Ainz had said that she wasn't allowed to use any of her racial classes, meaning she had been limited to her job classes. Too bad she only had a few since she focused more on her racial classes than her job classes.

Of the levels she had invested into her job classes, most of them were support based such as her High Priestess and Dragon Saintess classes. As the class names implied, she was capable of casting a limited array of heal and support spells, but lacked the ability to resurrect entities. For that she needed a dedicated healer build and an extremely high positive karma rating. On the bright side, her lesser-known Dragon Saintess class was capable of creating fairly powerful summons, even in comparison to high level players, as well as skills that buffed said summons.

On the other hand, she did have one warrior class, Ascended Guardian, courtesy of her broken defensive stats. It basically ensured that she couldn't be touched by anybody below a certain threshold while heavily reducing damage from attacks she couldn't completely block.

But those two job classes were literally useless in their bet.

She sighed yet again and covered her eyes with her hands. No matter how many times she thought about it, she couldn't see herself outdoing Ainz.

She grinned. "That's why he's the guild leader."

She got up from the bed and sat on the edge, fastening the cloak around her neck.

Well, it was fun while it lasted. She got to try out a lot of spells and she learned a lot from the brief experience as well. After she was done here, she was going to take a week off and spend some time in Nazarick.

Thinking about her fluffy bed brought a silly grin to her face, one that grew bigger as she thought about the cute dark elf twins.

'_Time to go…_' she stood up. The clone's shoes were nowhere to be seen. She guessed either the shoes broke or were left behind on the battlefield.

"Seems like I have to go barefoot…don't want to waste too many scrolls after all," she muttered under her breath.

Moreover, since Ainz's stature was so much taller than hers, the cloak he gave her dragged along the ground. '_Troublesome…_'

She opened the door and she saw Borg and Antonios waiting outside.

"Ah, Borg-san and Antonios-san, hello." She smiled cheerfully at them, pulling the cloak even closer to her body. Her tattered dress was in no way, shape, or form suitable to be shown to the public, and she really wanted to avoid catching the eyes of unwanted men.

She thought Borg and Antonios were going to greet her as well, but as soon as they saw her step out of the room, their eyes widened, and Antonios suddenly fell to his knees in tears.

"H-hannah-sama...kkh." He gritted his teeth and knelt down in front of her, desperately clinging to the ends of her cloak closer to his chest.

"E-eh? Antonios-san!" she bent down to Antonios, touching his shoulder in panic. "Are you okay, Antonios-san? Are you injured?" She worriedly asked, flustered.

It was shocking to see Antonios suddenly cry, even for Borg who had adventured with him for years had never seen him cry, not even when he lost his leg. It seemed like the Silver Priestess was making his teammate much more emotional than usual.

"B-borg-san, is there anything wrong with Antonios-san?" Tiamat shook her hands panic.

But instead of answering her, Borg laid his hand on Antonios's shoulder while smiling gently, "Oi, your action is too burdensome on the Priestess."

"I know!" He replied, almost screaming. Tears and snot trailed down his face. "But I can't help it. When I saw you falling on your knees, I thought you were going to die Hannah-sama!"

To Antonios, Tiamat was his saviour, his Goddess. He promised himself that he will pay back her kindness tenfold.

When he saw her fall in the bloodstained fields, his heart had sunk inside him like lead. Descending into the deep, cold, and dark ocean, where he watched his sunlight fade far away from his reach.

Tiamat floundered. She didn't know how to comfort the man currently sobbing in her cloak when she had no clue what was wrong.

All she could do was offer a few words of reprieve.

"Antonios-san, look at me," she said sternly. Her voice held such a sense of finality in it that Antonios stopped crying and raised his head to look at her.

Even though his vision was all blurry from his tears, he saw that even her silhouette was beautiful. The sun shone brightly on her, enhancing her features even more. He could only stare in awe.

"Hey, it's alright," she gently wiped away the tears on his cheeks. "I'm still alive aren't I?" She gave a wry smile. He succumbed to her touch, and felt the warmth of her hand that indicated that she was indeed alive and well.

But this made him tear up even more. "Y-yes…"

Tiamat looked at him and her heart bloomed with warmth; never in her entire life had a stranger been worried about her, and thus the door to her heart cracked open a bit.

Perhaps, just perhaps, the people in the New World were different…

"Come on, Antonios-san." She pulled him up so that he could stand on his feet, and Antonios obeyed.

Borg poked the back of Antonios's head, as he murmured, "Crybaby," under his breath and looked at Antonios tenderly.

Tiamat looked at Borg, '_Oh...OH?_'

Gay relationships were quite common back on Earth, but she wasn't sure about the New World, was Borg perhaps…?

She smiled happily when she saw the two of them bicker with each other. '_Ah, I really wanna sing Can't You Feel the Love Tonight, but no one here is going to understand that reference…_'

My, my, my. She had found something precious by accident.

"By the way, are you guys injured?" Tiamat asked, feeling a bit sorry for destroying their current atmosphere.

"Ah, a little bit." Borg replied, "But not as bad as you were, Hannah-san."

"Oi Borg! Show some respect, it's not Hannah-san, but Hannah-_sama_!" Antonios scowled at Borg.

Tiamat deadpanned at Antonios, she had forgotten for a while that he was that kind of person.

Deciding to ignore that comment, Tiamat asked the both of them, "Can you please ask the rest of the Adventurers who are injured to come see me in the Guild Hall's lobby?"

"Huh? Why?"

"I'm going to heal all of them."

As soon as she said that, she was immediately scolded by the two people in front of her.

"No! Are you crazy Hannah-san? Think about yourself before you think about others!"

"Exactly Hannah-sama! You just woke up afterall, please rest so that you won't put a strain on your body!"

Tiamat laughed out loud. Her silvery laughter rang throughout the whole guild, and people from the lobby looked up to the second floor curious as to what could be so amusing.

Honestly, she only found the whole situation funny because she did all this for herself. Not for others.

While they thought she was doing this out of kindness.

Their conceptions of her were completely absurd.

"Gosh…" Tiamat laughed so hard until she cried. She wiped the tears on the corner of her eyes. "I can assure you two, I'm alright." She chuckled.

She walked passed the two of them and went down the stairs barefooted, clenching Ainz's red robe to make sure that it covered her exposed skin. A small slit was opened on the left side of her leg so there was enough space for her to move her legs.

The people in the lobby all turned their heads toward her in awe.

How could someone who was on the verge of dying mere minutes ago be so beautiful?

Even though her hair was a tangled mess and her skin was caked with blood, her grace still shone through. Rather, it seemed to be enhanced. As if she was a sleeping beauty who had just awakened from her deep slumber

They could see a peek of her pale legs as she descended down the stairs, revealing her lean calves and delicate ankles.

Then she stopped at the bottom of the stairs.

"Everyone," her soft voice carried to every corner of the guild hall. "I received a private quest this morning to subjugate the stampede. I accepted. I was supposed to be among the first who fought, but I was late." Her eyes dropped in guilt as she looked down on the ground.

Then she did the unthinkable.

In front of everyone, the Silver Priestess bowed.

Everyone started clattering in their places, sounds and murmurs of shock resounded around the guild hall.

"I'm sorry, because of my tardiness, all of you had to suffer," her voice broke through all the noise in the lobby, and the murmuring died down.

This was the first time anyone in the adventurer guild had ever received this kind of treatment.

Usually if there was a conflict between adventurers, they either ignored one another or settled the matter privately. Most of the times, they ended up in a cold war, with each team ignoring the other and sometimes sabotaging the other group.

She stood back up. "That is why, as compensation, I am willing to heal your injuries for free." She beamed at them, a face so captivating and beautiful that it lit up the whole guild hall.

No one could utter a sound.

She sat down at the bottom of the stairs. "Well then, who's going to be first?"

The adventurers broke out of their shock and swarmed around the Priestess. No one was going to miss the opportunity of getting healed for free by the Silver Priestess, the Saviour of E-Rantel.

One by one she mended the adventurers who were wounded in the recent battle and more. Even though no one regrew a limb like Antonios, she healed everyone, from those with severe wounds to the those with only mere scratches.

Broken bones, gaping gashes, hereditary sickness, even to the smallest of scratches. She even erased old scars, an act that became widely popular among female adventurers. Although some refrained because they saw their scars as testaments to the hardships they underwent, she respected that.

All while refusing to take even a single copper coin.

After they were healed, the guild broke into discussions about the Silver Priestess. Nearly all agreed that aside from her beautiful appearance, she was also strong and kind-hearted. Truly, a treasure amongst treasures.

Right as she finished, Pluton Ainzach went out into the guild hall and exchanged her Mythril plate with Adamantine. Instead of envy, she was met with applause from the Adventurers.

When they suddenly started clapping to congratulate her, she blushed fiercely, not expecting that kind of reaction from them.

They all had the same thought.

Amongst everyone who had ever risen to Adamantine, she was the one most deserving of the rank. And if anyone said otherwise, well…

Let's just say they were gonna have a bad time.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

"Uh, it's alright, I'm just gonna fly home after this and change," she held both of her hands upwards, a total rejection in Japanese society. But the other party was undeterred.

"Nonsense Mademoiselle!" He fiercely replied. "This is the least we could do for you."

"Then at least please let me pay—"

"Non! Nonnonnonnonnonnon," he put his finger over her lips. "Now please try these, these, these, and these as well. Oh, and also this would absolutely be lovely on you."

He threw her a bunch of different styles of dresses and other various articles of clothing and then forced her into a changing room.

With practiced hands, as if they had done this a million times, a group of woman stripped her of Ainz's cloak and her ruined Priestess dress, and then inserted her into a corset.

All she could feel was the sensation of fabric against her skin and the weight of the dress, and in a flash, the curtains opened and there the… she had no idea what she was supposed to call this man.

Fashionista? Tailor? Merchant?

Startled out her musings by the man's enthusiastic clapping, Tiamat saw him admiring his masterpiece on her. "Incroyable! Merveilleuse!"

She looked at him with an impassive face and sighed inwardly.

Just how did she get here…

After she had healed all of the Adventurers, she left the adventurer guild and was greeted by a bunch of people, one of them in particular snuck her into his shop when he saw the state of her clothing, insisting that she could take any piece of clothing she wanted.

His shop was small but luxurious nonetheless, with a wide glass window so that everyone could look inside the shop, and just outside, she saw a group of people gathered together in front of it.

The shop was decorated with dark lacquered wood, with rolls of fabrics and dressed mannequins neatly placed around the shop.

Currently, she was standing in an impromptu changing room, located smack dab in the middle of his shop, with only curtains to protect her decency, and in front of her was a large mirror that reflected her appearance.

"Twirl for me Mademoiselle," with a sigh, she complied.

She twirled around, feeling the full weight of the dress. A layered dress was far too extravagant for her to wear anywhere. The color was a mismatch of greyish green and dark red with swirls embroidered across the skirt . She had to wear some sort of an iron cage to make the dress floof wide, making her small frame appear bulky.

She applauded anyone who could look good in this dress.

As someone who spent hours designing her character to look as perfect as possible, she inwardly cringed in pain. This was not how her character was supposed to look like...

If they had a towering boat wig, she was going to look exactly like Madam Antoinette. The dress was a perfect replica of 18th century nobilities.

"What do you think?" He asked her.

She sighed and shook her head. "I'm sorry, uhm…"

"Ah," as if he came to an important realization. "I haven't introduced myself. I am Paolo, the best tailor in E-Rantel."

"Paolo-san," she smiled gently at him, subtly clenching her tummy so that she wouldn't burst into laughter.

'_Oh Lord, the challenges you put against me…_'

Paolo reminded her of the Paolo from Princess Diaries.

She couldn't help herself, so she let out the smallest of giggles.

The heavy accent, his demenour and light touches that made him seem gay, and over the top suggestions.

It was a perfect mirror.

She brought herself together, and replied politely with a small curtsy, "Ah, I'm sorry, I'm Hannah Annafelowz."

"We all know who you are, dearest," Paolo said, checking the other dresses he had on his shelf. "After all the ruckus you brought with you on your first day, and what happened today," he sighed. "If no one knows who you are, then I shall beat some sense into him."

Tiamat just hummed, trying to calm herself. Everything the guy said threatened to cause her to break out in hysterical laughter.

"By the way, dearest. What do you think of that dress?"

Tiamat twirled once again while looking at herself in the mirror, and she agreed once again with what she had previously thought. "Yeah...I don't think this is what I had in mind."

"Hoo, is that so Mademoiselle?" He took out a piece of parchment and a brush, and gave it to her. "Then, please draw what you desire to wear and I will make it this instant!"

"W-wait," holy shit Paolo just gave her a heavy burden. She was _not_ a designer. Sure she could visualize what she wanted, but to draw them were two completely different things.

She closed the curtain on him, and ushered the lady helpers out of the makeshift changing room. "Paolo-san, I don't think it's best for me to do that. I appreciate everything you've done, your dress is very beautiful, but I don't need it."

She took a scroll from her inventory, and whispered 『Create Lesser Item』to make a pair of undergarments, and quickly unequipped the layered dress which landed with a small poof next to her in order to put on the newly created underwear. She hurriedly bent down to pick up the cloak Ainz's had given her and draped it around her.

She had to because her tattered dress was taken away by the lady helpers, and making a dress out of thin air could raise suspicions.

"I understand Mademoiselle, but I insist," Paolo said, his tone suddenly changing from upbeat to sullen. "If you didn't help us, then the city would be ransacked and people would have died."

She opened the curtains slightly so that she could see his face.

"Look outside mademoiselle." He turned to his left to view the wide glass window of the shop where people were flocking together. "Those are the people that you've saved. If not for you, they would have lost their incomes, businesses, family, and most importantly their homes. They are all here to thank you. This is why I insist. You have helped us and getting you a new piece of clothing is the least I can do as a thank you. I hope you'll accept…"

Tiamat looked at his somber face and turned her head to the window as well. When she looked at the people behind the glass window, they all waved their hands at her, giving her a wide smile, and she couldn't help but to do the same to them.

After Tiamat gave it some thought, she finally decided. "Then Paolo-san," she smiled at him, getting out of the curtain and handing him a piece of parchment. "Perhaps there's something you can do other than giving me your dress."

"Hoo? What could be better than my finest creation?" He asked curiously.

At his question she gave him the widest grin. "I want you to make a red dress and a green suit in children's size!" She said excitedly.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

"Bye nee-san!"

One child raised his hand in a large wave near the gates, and she waved back at him with a smile. How could she not when such a cute angel just waved his hand at her?

Pentakrisis swooped down from the sky and onto the ground near her, lowering his wings so that Tiamat may reach him.

After Tiamat snapped a safe harness on him, a gift given to her by the citizens of E-Rantel, she patted Pentakrisis's head and with a flap of his wings, he shot up to the skies.

"Let's head back home to Nazarick, Taki…" she called him by his new pet name since Pentakrisis was proving to be a mouthful.

Once she was halfway to Nazarick, she opened a『Gate』straight down to the Sixth Floor Arena, and immediately landed in the middle of it. The gust of wind from Pentakrisis's wings blew away all the sand and dust as they landed.

As soon as they arrived, her baby dragons immediately swarmed around her excitedly.

She jumped off Taki, deactivating『Ragnarok's Scale』, and as soon as she did, the baby dragons hopped on her and she was pressed to the ground.

Pentakrisis reigned them in by softly chuffing at them, and they started to move much slower and gentler than before.

Pentakrisis helped her up with the tip of his snout and as soon as she got up, she hugged her babies happily.

"Awww, I miss you too!" she squeezed each and everyone of them tightly around her arms. "Looks like my ittle-wittle babies have grown up!"

True to her words, her baby dragons were now level thirty-four and were slightly taller than before.

"Lady Tiamat!" someone excitedly shouted from a distance, and when she turned around, she saw Aura running towards her.

Tiamat let go of her dragons and opened up her arms as wide as possible right when Aura jumped right into her. She picked her up and twirled her around before giving Aura a bone-crushing hug, figuratively of course.

"Aura, I missed you so much!" she rapidly placed kisses on the beast-tamer's cheeks, and Aura quickly turned into a shade of red, dyeing her skin a dark pink.

"I-I missed you too, My Lady, hehe," she beamed happily from the affection the Supreme Being was giving her.

"Is Mare in his usual place?" she picked her up with a confidence born of the million times she had done this when she was younger. She had Aura nestled on her midsection against her right hip, her face facing outward while her lag straddled her hips as she held her leg and back with her arms

Aura was not as surprised as she was before, instead, welcoming Tiamat's touch eagerly, like a plant thirsting for water.

"Yup!" she answered cheerfully, and with a nod, Tiamat jumped into the VIP box of the Arena where she saw Mare with his head stuck in a book.

When Mare noticed she was there, he flusteredly slammed his book shut and shot up to his feet. "Welcome home, L-Lady Tiamat…"

She put Aura down and opened her arms wide to hug the other twin. "I'm happy to be home. Now for the kisses!" she landed two quick kisses on Mare's left and right cheek respectively, and just like his sister, his skin reddened in embarrassment.

When Tiamat saw his reaction, she could only cover her eyes with the palm of her hands, '_Seriously, why are they so cuuuuute!_' she screamed inwardly in joy. These twins were seriously bad for her heart.

'_As expected. Cuteness is truly the strongest force on any world._'

"Anyways, I got a gift for you two." she declared to the twins happily.

"Gifts! Really My Lady?" Aura questioned in anticipation. If she had a tail, it would definitely be wiggling in delight.

Her brother was much more subdued, but she could still see the twinkle of excitement dancing in his eyes.

She pulled out Paolo's clothes from their wrappings in a green and red box respectively. "Tadaa! This one is for Aura, and this one is for Mare."

"I-Is this really for us?" Mare asked, awed that a Supreme Being was giving them presents.

"Of course! But the quality may not be as good as Nazarick's. If you want I can make some adjustments."

To her surprise, both twins shrieked "No!" at the same time.

"W-We'll accept any gift from you, Lady Tiamat." Mare pleaded, clutching the box tightly against his small frame.

"Me too!" Aura chimed in.

Her jaw almost hit the floor because she was unbelievably surprised. Well, it was totally understandable from their perspective. If they gave her any gift, she would also accept them gratefully, so she didn't say anything.

"Well, go on then," she said with a smile as she sat together with the twins as they carefully opened their presents. "Open your presents!"

They didn't say anything as their gifts were revealed to them. All they did was stare, mouths agape upon seeing the contents of the boxes.

Tiamat anxiously looked at their expressions. Did they hate it? Did they love it?

At first they looked extremely shocked, but when they saw the clothing and took it out of the box, their eyes simultaneously lit up.

She didn't miss how much their eyes sparkled at the moment. For Aura, it was a red dress that was both childishly cute yet carried a hint of mature elegance, with patterns of dark orchids embroidered all over it. For Mare, it was an emerald suit and pants paired with a steel blue vest with ivy patterned embroidery.

Looking at the two sets of clothing once again, Tiamat internally squealed, already imagining how the twins would look wearing their new outfits

They continued staring at their presents until she decided to ask, "What do you think?"

They jumped off the floor and looked her straight in the eye. Their small and round heads reminded her so much of kittens that she started to pet both of their heads without realizing.

Upon feeling the Supreme Being's hands patting their heads, the twins immediately stiffened. They had not expected so much affection from their god and goddess. Their hearts overflowed with bliss, spilling out in the form of grateful tears. How fortunate they were to serve the all-powerful and merciful Supreme Beings!

"Do you like them?"

As if woken from a trance, they hurriedly wiped the tears from their eyes, and quickly nodded a few times at her. "Yes, yes! They're very pretty My Lady!" Life returned to their eyes and they shimmered like a pond in the morning sun.

Tiamat nodded happily. It was all good as long as the twins loved them, but she did see the slightest bit of hesitation when they accepted their gifts. She hugged them tightly, both of them, against her chest and whispered, "Next time, please wear these clothes when I come to visit."

Their childish bright smiles were extremely beautiful. She had never seen them smile like that before.

If smiles were to have corresponding temperature associated with them, then theirs would probably be the warmth of spring. A smile that caused flowers to bloom within people's heart.

To think that this would make them so happy brought a motherly smile to her face. Seeing them happy made her happy. Even after she had returned to her room, she couldn't stop her lips from twitching upwards.

Curious, Yuri who was in the room by her side watched as Tiamat attempted to control herself. "My Lady, has there been something good happening lately?"

"I'm fine Yuri, it's just…" she halted, struggling to find the right words, but then she realized, being honest was far better than having to hold her feelings back. At this simple revelation, she smiled broadly, noticing that Yuri was smiling as well. "It's just that I'm really happy to finally be home."

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

"Albedo, I'm sorry, but hand this in and have it redone. There are too many mistakes."

"My apologies!"

"Umm, please redo this."

"Understood, My Lady!."

"I'm really really sorry, but please redo this one here as well."

Ainz's luxurious office was filled with tasteful and exotic furniture. Every single piece was of exquisite design and combined with each other to create a powerful atmosphere. The crimson carpet that laid upon the floor was thick and soft, swallowing Albedo's footsteps as she walked around the room. Flags bearing assorted insignia hung around the walls of the room.

An imposing mahogany desk sat in the center of the office. But the one who sat on the black leather chair was not the owner.

Instead, it was one of the Last Supreme Beings of Ainz Ooal Gown.

If Albedo were to describe her in one phrase—dressed as she was in a long red imperial robe that seemed ever so divine— then she would have to be a "Goddess" indeed.

Her face was perfectly symmetrical, free of any blemishes. Her skin was as white as snow and her lips as red as roses, features which reminded her a lot of that fairy tale book in Ashurbanipal. But instead of short black locks, long straight crimson hair that touched the ground as she sat on the chair flowed down her back.

Her horns symbolized her power and age. Intricate yet sturdy, and without a single mark on them; signifying her mastery in combat as well as the many experiences she must have had. Her scaly tail peeked out from the bottom of her dress, thumping the soft carpet ever so slightly in frustration

As she rested her chin upon her crossed fingers, Albedo saw the rings on her fingers gleam as they shone with magical might.

"You know what? This is absolutely ridiculous. There's literally no point in reviewing all of these documents," the Supreme Being looked to her left where mountains of documents were sprawled in stacks on the table. "What to do…" she muttered to herself.

As per ordered by the leader of Nazarick, Tiamat was asked to help Albedo with her administrative work while Ainz was adventuring. Since she was going to take a week off from adventuring, she found no problem in helping her dearest friend.

But the stacks of paper in front of her filled her with despair as her eyebrows slightly twitched.

'_Isn't this just Momo passing his work to me…_' she grumbled inwardly.

Well, she had already decided that she would help. So she was definitely going to do her best.

"We could take a break of this if that is your will," Albedo who had heard her muttering, replied gracefully.

Tiamat sighed, administrative work was not her forte, but at least all she had to do was to check whether the documents were consistent with one another, which Ainz would review later on. However, there were countless defects on several of the papers. Moreover, the names and contents were written by different people in different formats so it was much more difficult to check.

She sighed as she leaned back on the chair and brought one of the papers up to the light.

"Albedo," she finally decided on what to do.

"Yes, My Lady."

"I'm going to reject all of these documents. Please bring me a blank piece of paper," she sighed for what felt like the hundredth time this day, feeling sorry for Albedo who would have to redo everything. Consumed by guilt, she decided to make things easier for her.

Albedo immediately prepared what she had asked for and Tiamat immediately went to work.

She created a uniform format by drawing up a form and tried making a draft budget form while she was at it.

Since they were not in YGGDRASIL anymore, she decided that YGGDRASIL money would have to be preserved. Instead, they switched their resources to suit the New World's condition. This included the use of money for the day to day operations in Nazarick.

When she deemed that it was good enough and had fulfilled every single criterion needed, she handed the piece of paper to Albedo.

"Please print this in large numbers. Notify and distribute this to every floor in Nazarick. In the future, all documents that are not using this format will be rejected."

Albedo enthusiastically looked over the form. "I understand! By using this form, the number of defects will be reduced and it will be easier to check if a form was prepared beforehand. As expected of My Lady!"

After these forms circulate around Nazarick, filling out reports would become far simpler, compared to the previous method making pages upon pages of jumbled words. With this, Albedo and Ainz's workload would become much easier.

Inwardly she apologized to Ainz for making such a large decision. There were just so many documents that needed to be checked. By the time she finished she would have went blind…

All she needed to do was decrease their workload. That was all.

Tiamat brought another assortment of documents to the coffee table Ainz had in his office. Albedo arranged the documents into piles based on their subject, while she recorded the mistakes in any calculations made.

Albedo's assortment was easy to understand so Tiamat quickly processed document after document. '_Truly the might of the Overseer of Nazarick,_' she gushed over Albedo's skills.

By the time they were finally finished, it was time for lunch.

"To think that lunch time would finally come…" Tiamat sprawled herself across the sofa with a soft thud.

"Good job, My Lady. I won't ever forget this favor, so please come help by all means again." Albedo bowed towards her direction.

Even though she hated paperwork, she found herself agreeing to Albedo's request. Well it was all for Nazarick anyways, so none of her hard work would go to waste.

Tiamat sat down on the sofa and looked over at Albedo. For her to not have a decent lunch at noon, she must've been using the same『Ring of Sustenance』as Demiurge.

Tiamat sombered after considering Albedo's meal circumstances. She felt guilty for happily eating her meals without being aware of the Guardian's situations.

"Albedo, are you going to be busy after this?"

"No. Is there anything you need from me, My Lady?"

Tiamat stood up and grabbed Albedo by her wrist. "Then, let's eat lunch together!" she smiled happily and without waiting Albedo's reply, she opened『Gate』to the dining hall.

"Lady Tiamat! Albedo-sama!" the homunculi maids exclaimed in shock as they all stood up simultaneously, not expecting to see one of the Supreme Beings and the Overseer of Nazarick, two of the most important people of Nazarick to suddenly appear in Nazarick's public dining hall.

To Tiamat who was not used to being in the spotlight, the maid's curious gazes were quite painful…

"It's alright, please be at ease. Albedo and I were just about to grab some lunch," she said trying to diffuse the situation. As soon as she arrived she could feel the tension oozing off of the homunculi maids.

'_I guess they don't feel too comfortable with us here…_'

"My Lady, if you want I could ask Sous Chef what you want for lunch. For the Supreme Being to eat together with the maids and eating the maids' food…"

"Eh? What are you talking about Albedo?" she grinned at the succubus. "Any food that comes out from Nazarick's kitchen is delicious. Plus we have to save Nazarick's resources properly."

"But you don't have to eat out here My Lady."

"But isn't the dining hall used for people to eat?" she innocently asked back.

"Well, you are correct, but…" seeing that she could not diminish Tiamat enthusiasm, Albedo relented. "Then please take a seat My Lady. I'll bring our lunch to the table."

As Albedo walked to the line to grab their shares, Tiamat looked for a table to sit at. She found a table of six filled with only four homunculi maids and walked over there. But as soon as she arrived, the four maids immediately took their plates and moved away from her.

"E-Eh?" Tiamat was confused, why did they move away from her? Did she smell or something? Unconsciously, she sniffed herself.

No, she didn't smell particularly bad, although she did smell like paper and ink but that was because they had been cooped up in Ainz's office since morning.

'_Are they perhaps not comfortable with having me around? Is that why Albedo suggested that I should eat somewhere else?_' she humored the thought for a few seconds, feeling a little bit down that the maids were avoiding her like the plague.

But that was not the case.

In fact, the homunculi maids are pleasantly surprised by the arrival of two of the most exalted beings in Nazarick, and were taking their lunch together because they heard from the oldest sister of the Pleiades maids that Lady Tiamat was baking desserts for today's lunch and dinner for the denizens of Nazarick to eat.

That was why the dining hall was so much more packed than usual.

However, they didn't feel that they were worthy enough to be sitting at the same table as a Supreme Being.

Tiamat looked at their half-full plates and noticed they hadn't even finished their meals. Since she didn't want to make the atmosphere more uncomfortable than it already was, she said to the four maids. "That's alright, please sit down. I can assure you that Albedo and I only come here to eat."

With a warm, yet cautious smile, she ushered them into their chairs and one by one, they slowly sat down.

Tiamat sat down at the far right end of the table, leaving Albedo a seat across from her. Looking at the maids who stopped touching their forks, she said to them, "Please don't mind me and enjoy your meals. I also baked some desserts for you all to eat, please give them a try."

At this, they immediately replied with vigor. "O-of course, Tiamat-sama! W-With pleasure!"

When Albedo arrived, she carried strawberry danishes, a basket of toast and scrambled eggs with chorizos and salad on plates for two.

"Then, shall we eat?" Tiamat asked happily.

That day, the homunculi maids could only listen as the two discussed the future policies of personnels of Nazarick.

* * *

_Canon Omake(s)_

* * *

**Sortie with Shalltear**

"So...wait...you...this is where you sleep?" she asked incredously. Seriously, who the hell made the cute legal loli Shalltear sleep in a SEX DUNGEON?!

Oh wait, of course.

'_Peroroncino_…'

The first thing she noticed about the room was the abundance of leather. The floor was made out of leather, and the bed was also made out of leather, with a disturbing lack of sheets.

Brown leather and black wood decorated the entire room.

A weird contraption was also hung up on the wall near the bed.

Curiously, she asked Shalltear. "Why is the floor and the bed made out of leather?"

"That's because instead of walking, the floor is made for people to _kneel_," Shalltear boasted, grinning widely. "Obviously, the bed is not for sleeping, My Lady."

Her voice sounded so sultry that Tiamat just stared at the small vampire in disbelief at the heavy implication of it.

"That's absurd," she blanched. "Beds are made for people to sleep on it."

Shalltear only smiled, as she slowly sipped her tea.

"Aren't you curious, My Lady? I can assure you I can offer you the greatest pleasure you will ever experience in your life." her eyes glowed red in anticipation as she offered the deal to the Supreme Being.

A small gush escaped Shalltear's nether region when she imagined the Supreme Being in front of her writhing underher in both pleasure and pain. Unknowingly, Shalltear began to pant as her face slowly grew redder with desire.

Tiamat crossed her hands in an X-shape. "Pass! But I am curious though. How does that work?" she pointed at one complicated contraption in particular.

"Hoo, it's simple My Lady, you just..."

At the end of the day Tiamat promised herself to never return.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Chattering with Cocytus**

She landed with a thud on the cold tundra floor. She blinked a few times as the dots in her vision cleared away. It was then that she found herself staring at the colossal icy blue insect in front of her.

"My. Lady?"

Her eyes snapped towards the sound of his scratchy voice and there in all of his glory is Cocytus, the Vermin Lord.

"I. Think. We. Should. Stop. Our. Training. Session. Here. My. Lady." Cocytus demanded cooly as he helped her up with one of his arms.

Since Tiamat had a few days of vacation she was thinking of spending one of her days training with Cocytus. Of course, with her nonexistent physical or magical attack, Cocytus had a massive advantage over her.

However, Tiamat had her ridiculous defensive build that was over the charts, making the training session pointless.

So she just settled on seeing the movement of his swords and parrying his attacks.

Cocytus scanned Tiamat all over, checking for injuries, and when he found none, his jaws snapped in satisfaction.

"I'm good Cocytus, thank you," she smiled at him. Despite being a vermin, Tiamat was strangely alright with Cocytus. Besides, after spending some time with Cocytus, Tiamat found out that the fifth Floor Guardian was a total teddy bear.

He also adored children, and found the dark elves twins cute.

"Shall. We. Take. A. Break. Then?" Cocytus offered to her.

"Tea?" she asked in response.

In the end she and Cocytus spend the day gushing about Aura and Mare, training forgotten.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Tea Party with Aura and Mare**

"My Lady! Welcome Back!" Aura's voice boomed all over the arena.

"Hello to you too Aur—" she halted in shock with her mouth wide open.

Before her, was Aura wearing a red dress with a red rose decorating her hair. Besides her was her brother, Mare, wearing the green suit with his hair tied back.

Aura had lost all her tomboyishness while Mare became so manly all of a sudden.

And Tiamat came to a realization.

She had unconsciously made Aura and Mare cosplay as Rin and Len from Vocaloid. Aura as the Daughter of Evil and Mare as her servant.

The similarities were truly uncanny…

'_A happy coincidence!_'

Aura ran towards Tiamat, lifting the hem of the dress with her hands, and her brother followed suit behind her.

"What do you think, My Lady?" Aura twirled with Mare. To Tiamat, they looked like dancing fairies.

Something bubbled inside Tiamat and she tried to hold back. She gently put the basket of food she had brought down on the floor. Then she tackled the twins to the ground while giving them hugs and kisses on their cheeks while they blushed happily.

'_Bukubuku-chan, your children are too cute!_'

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Tea Party with Demiurge**

"..."

"..."

"I didn't think that this would happen…" she started the conversation.

Currently she was on the seventh floor of Nazarick with Demiurge enjoying some tea and cake in the Blazing Temple overlooking the River of Lava.

However the very moment she poured the tea into one of the cups, the tea instantly evaporated into thin air.

She sighed, while Demiurge just sat there with his usual smile.

'_That's such a waste though…_'

The Goddess in front of him was too honest with her emotions and when he saw her disappointed expression because he didn't get to drink the tea she had prepared, his devilish heart filled with joy.

It made Demiurge happy that one of the Last Supreme Beings thought so highly of him.

He had heard of the news that his Lady was taking turns visiting the Floor Guardians, and he had wondered when would he get his visit, eagerly anticipating it.

Demiurge smile widened, almost reaching his ears. He fixed his glasses as he came to a decision. "Then why don't we do something else My Lady?"

"Something else…?"

That day, Demiurge personally escorted Tiamat to look around the Seventh Floor with her hand around his. Tiamat was unable to get the sound of tortured screams out of her head for several days to come.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Associating with Albedo**

"Thank you for inviting me to your room, My Lady. It is an honor."

Albedo sat in front of her in her room. They were sitting in her room since Albedo didn't specifically have a room aside from the Throne Room, but they couldn't have tea there.

"I'm happy to have you here, Albedo!" She said cheerfully. "You've worked so hard for Nazarick. It must've been tough on you."

Albedo beamed back, her wings fluttering happily. "No, not at all, My Lady. The work has been challenging, but it's fun nonetheless."

"I'm glad to hear that. Are you eating properly?"

The lunch she had with Albedo was actually Albedo's first time eating the meals cooked in Nazarick. That was why Tiamat emphasized to her later on that having a meal everyday was as important as finishing up work in Nazarick.

"Yes, I try keeping a consistent eating schedule everyday, My Lady."

Tiamat was wearing her sleepwear, since Albedo's work entailed working late into the night —an action Tiamat heavily disagreed with.

Her sleepwear was an off shoulder white slip dress that stretched down to her knees, contrasting with her long red tresses.

In front of Tiamat, Albedo's face gushed red as she saw the Dragoness in her sleepwear with her sultry, round, white bed, in the background. Thousand of thoughts ran around in Albedo's head. But one stood out in particular;

'_I'm going to lose my virginity with Lady Tiamat!_'

At this particular thought, her breath grew ragged as her heartbeat quickened. The expectation, the ecstasy. She knew there was no way Lady Tiamat invited her here just to have tea.

"M-My, Lady…" she couldn't deny the excitement and the tightness in her nether region.

'_Ah, the agony of waiting…_'

Tiamat just sipped her tea, completely oblivious to Albedo's intent. "Yes, Albedo?"

"Could we skip the tea instead?"

"Eh? You wanna go straight to dessert?"

'_OH YES DESSERT!_'

"May I start then My Lady?"

Tiamat opened her hands wide to the spread of various desserts on the table. "Of course! Please help yourself!"

But Albedo didn't go after the pastries.

Yuri, who stood there in the corner of the room, widened her eyes in alarm as she saw Albedo tackle the Supreme Being to the floor, splattering the tea and the desserts on the floor.

In haste, she quickly ran to her Lady's side to help her.

"Can I help myself, My Lady? Then don't mind if I do! Ah~ My Lady!"

"A-Albedo!"

"Ever since you touched me in the throne room, I couldn't forget the heat of your hand against my breast! My Lady~"

Yuri, who couldn't separate Albedo from Tiamat, called the Eight-Edged Assassin who immediately pulled Albedo away from the Supreme Being.

After that, Tiamat never invited Albedo for tea again.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Tea time with Pandora's Actor**

Nothing to do.

Counting money.

Nothing to see.

Gold everywhere.

That was the daily life of Pandora's Actor.

As the Floor Guardian of the Treasury who guarded the wonders of Nazarick, he was not moved from his post. That was why he had to spend most of his time here.

However, his daily routine was monotone and mundane.

Don't get him wrong. He loved guarding the Treasury, but there was a small part of him that was a bit envious of the other Floor Guardians. One of his friends, Kyouhukou's children, would sometimes give reports on what was happening in Nazarick.

In his boredom, he wondered what life would be like if he wasn't the treasurer.

So, he changed himself into one of the sofas in the Treasury Room.

But he only grew sadder, because the life of a couch was so much more boring than his. At least he could jump in a pile of money. But there was nothing he could do by being a sofa.

Just when he was about to turn back, someone came into the room.

The Supreme Beings in all their glory.

"Huh, there's no one here…" Tiamat-sama said out loud.

"That's weird," Ainz grunted. "Pandora's Actor should be here."

"Maybe he had other errands to run?"

"No. I only assigned him to do his duties on this floor."

"Then, shall we wait? I really want to meet your creation Momo-chan!"

Ainz sighed, but gave a tired nod. Tiamat knew that he knew that Pandora's Actor was his cringy past, but there was nothing he could do about it at this point.

He made his way to one of the purple sofas, and Tiamat to the other.

Unknown to them, Tiamat sat on Pandora's Actor.

Because he was too ashamed to turn back in this situation, he stayed there as a sofa until they left the room and from that day onwards, Pandora's Actor would promise himself not to perform those kind of antics ever again.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Aureole Omega and Victim**

It took a while, but she finally got permission from Ainz to visit the eighth-floor on the condition that she only met with Aureole, the youngest of the Pleiades, and Victim.

Seeing as teleportation was handled by Aureole, Tiamat felt sad that Aureole could not do anything or even move away from her spot due to her duty of monitoring teleportation throughout Nazarick. That was why she was planning to bring desserts to Aureole for her hard work.

Since she was heading towards the Eight Floor, she was also planning on bringing these desserts to Victim and maybe even Rubedo if she was able to consume food.

However Ainz immediately disagreed with her proposal out of fear of Rubedo creating mass chaos due to any settings Tabula may have had coded into her. She tried to convince him that she would be fine, but he insisted, pointing out that her safety and well being was much more important than delivering pieces of cookies. In the end, she resigned herself to just meeting with Aureole and Victim.

As she stepped out of the『Gate』, she was greeted with a vast wilderness devoid of all life. As she started to walk towards where the Cherry Blossom Sanctuary was, she nostalgically thought back to the time where fifteen-hundred players had united to raid Nazarick.

As she continued to trek through the dusty plains with wind howling around her, a few sakura petals fluttered pass her and she vaguely recalled how the environmental hazards here inflicted debuffs even she would be hard pressed to deal with. She warmly thought back to how all the guild members worked together on the eighth-floor, optimizing it into a death trap that was borderline cheating.

They had made the entire floor absent of obstacles in order to make it as large as possible, therefore allowing the environmental debuffs more time to wreak havoc on invading players, before they would finally reach the Sanctuary and Sephiroth; an imposing tree modeled after religious depictions of it.

Tiamat's reminiscing came to a close as she found herself right at the doorsteps of the Sanctuary. Sakura trees blossomed over emerald green grass as far as her eyes could see, and at the base of Sephiroth, she saw Aureole and Victim seemingly waiting for her.

Aureole Omega bore the appearance of a young pale skinned miko with short black hair, and was wearing a red hakama and a white haori. Her eyes were a clear shade of electric blue, and even from a distance Tiamat could see that her eyes were unfocused, a sign that even though she looked like she was resting, she was still managing all the teleportation channels throughout Nazarick.

As Tiamat approached Aureole, she saw what appeared to be a misshapen floating fetus beside her, borne aloft by stick-like wings with petals blooming from it.

She waved at them from afar, and saw them wave back. Seeing Victim waving its small hands at her was endearing. Since the distance was quite far she used a skill to fly over to where they were.

"Sorry I took so long getting here," she apologized as she finally arrived at the base of Sephiroth.

Aureole stood and bowed in a dignified manner, truly behavior befitting one called a Miko. Victim also made a makeshift bow with its small build.

"That's alright My Lady," Aureole replied softly.

"Did you wait long?" she asked them.

This time Victim replied. "No, Not at all My Lady. We're really happy that you came to visit."

Looking at Victim, Tiamat's eyes glazed over and absentmindedly gave the misshapen fetus a small pat on the head. Her eyes unfocused as if she wasn't here.

"My Lady…?" Aureole asked in concern, perhaps the Supreme Being was ill?

After hearing Aureole's voice Tiamat woke up from her stupor and gave them a small smile.

"Sorry, I was just thinking about something from _back then_, Victim reminded me of someone, that's all," she smiled somberly.

But this made them even more concerned.

When Aureole opened her mouth to ask who Victim reminded her of, Tiamat cut her off, "Let's sit down and enjoy these desserts shall we? I brought cheese cakes!"

Deciding to drop the issue entirely, Aureole closed her mouth and sat at the table she prepared.

She only watched as the Supreme Being cheerfully cut the cheese cake into smaller portions so that it was easier for Victim to eat it.

She wondered about what her Supreme Being had said.

Perhaps she will ask her in the future, but not now.

Not when they were happily enjoying life as it was.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Bonus Omake: Niceties with Nigredo**

Contrary to what she believed, the hallway that led to Nigredo's room was cold, damp, and dark.

She hated the dark.

Dark room, dark closet, any darkness without a glimpse of light was what she hated the most.

She made her way through the dark empty corridor with a small flame floating on her palm.

The flame illuminated the dark hallway with its golden rays, but even so, it did not diminish the darkness of the corridor. Instead, the shadows of the flame that danced around hermade everything creepier.

Suddenly she heard a small snip just in front of her.

She stopped.

But the snips continued.

Snipsnipsnipsnipsnip, the sound of scissor blades repeatedly touching one another without cutting anything.

Then in a low, hushed voice, she heard a voice, "...aby."

"H-Hello?" She called out to the darkness.

Snipsnipsnip. "...my baby…"

At the hushed voice, she immediately stiffened in place, but the sound of scissors and the whispers continued.

"Baby…" snipsnip. "Where?" snipsnipsnip.

"N-Nigredo?" She asked to the darkness.

Then a black blur suddenly ran in front of her, and she shrieked in surprise, but the blur continued asking her.

"Whereismybabywhereismybabywhereismybaby!" The sound of scissors snipping around her was becoming louder and much more threatening.

"H-HERE!" Tiamat shoved something into Nigredo's arms, shutting her eyes in the process

"M-My baby~" Nigredo cooed happily.

Luckily Tiamat had prepared a doll beforehand.

Tiamat sighed in relief. She just wanted to deliver some desserts to Nigredo, since not everyone got a chance to go to the cafeteria.

'_Why Tabula...why did you have to make her like this?_'

In front of her, illuminated by golden flames was Nigredo. Her face, a mass of exposed muscles and mouth without lips were happily kissing the doll Tiamat had given her. Her lidless eyes were brightly shining, staring obsessively at the doll.

If one did not know about her true nature, they would have immediately run away.

But Tiamat knew Nigredo was different.

The way she touched the doll gently, as if she was afraid to hurt the doll, and how she looked at the doll fondly, giving kisses to the doll with her lips.

Inwardly, Tiamat swooned. Despite her appearance, which was Tabula's take on Sadako, Nigredo looked cute with that doll.

Seemingly out of place, but her behaviour was cute nonetheless.

Tiamat was weak to cute things.

"Shall we have tea and desserts with your baby?" She asked Nigredo happily. Now that she was with someone, the dark corridor seemed less scary.

Nigredo just nodded, still holding the doll.

So, Tiamat led the way, holding Nigredo's hand.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Alternate Ending with Nigredo**

"Whereismybabywhereismybabywhereismybaby!" She asked almost screaming.

Tiamat gave her the doll she made beforehand.

Expecting her to wrap the doll around her arms, Tiamat sighed happily in relief.

But Nigredo threw her doll on the floor.

"It's wrong, it's wrong, it's wrong, it's wrong...my baby, my baby, my baby—! You, you, you, you, took, took, took, took, my baby, my baby, my baby, my baby—!"

A face with no skin, just a mass of muscle, wide bright eyes that stared at her soul, and her mouth. Oh God, her mouth had no lips!

"You took my baby!" Nigredo pointed her scissors at Tiamat and in panic Tiamat put out the fire on her palm and started running away.

Afterwards, Tiamat cried while hugging Ainz. Ainz was seemingly confused as he awkwardly tried to comfort his friend.

That day Tiamat promised herself she would not bring cookies to Nigredo by herself and reminded herself to make a large flashlight.

(ㅇㅅㅇ❀)

**Question: from all the omakes, which one is your favorite. Let me know in your reviews :)**

**Hackslashbash: Gotta say, favorite one was Pandora's Actor's sofa adventures. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE. Have a great day!**


	13. CHAPTER 13: New Perspectives

**CHAPTER 13: New Perspectives**

* * *

**Reuploaded on 05/08/2019**

**Hackslashbash: Heavy AU territory starts here. Also, we finally reached 100k+! Chapter 2 had also been reuploaded.**

* * *

Mix.

Cook.

Repeat.

Mix.

Cook.

Repeat.

Throughout the week, Tiamat entertained herself through the wonders of baking.

Not just dessert. Everything from breakfast to dinner, was exclusively prepared by her for the denizens of Nazarick.

Funnily enough, the monsters here had roughly the same flavor as corresponding animals back on Earth did. Orcs and boars tasted similar to pigs. Rock birds or any bird in general tasted pretty much the same as chicken. Cows, well, they had cows here, so that didn't matter.

But the amount of cattle that people raised were limited since no one thought of farming cows for meat in this world. Instead, they used the cows for their milk.

On the first day, breakfast was omelet au fromage with a plate of toast and stir fried broccoli and carrots. Lunch was sausage soup with bread. For dinner, they had stir fried pork with ginger using one of the monstrous red boars she killed in the pandemonium with vanilla panna cotta as dessert.

On the second day, for breakfast she made a quick jam from the fruits she had received from the grateful citizens of E-Rantel, and prepared a large amount of croissants. Lunch was rock bird teriyaki with onion soup. Using the remaining boar, she cooked gyudon made three flavored mochi ice cream for dessert.

The third day was rather simple. Using the jam she made yesterday, she baked a variety of pastries for breakfast. Since the theme of the day was western food, she cooked spaghetti with minced orc and boar meat for lunch. For dinner, she made salisbury steak with mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables, as well as cheesecake topped with lemon curd.

When she woke up, she knew exactly what to do. She had prepared all the ingredients she needed last night then soaked in her bath and fell asleep with a smile on her face.

Early that morning, as per instructed in『Message』last night, she found Aura and Mare already waiting in the kitchen.

"Ah, good morning My Lady!" Aura, the extroverted one out of the twin, greeted her first as always.

"G-good morning, My Lady!" Mare stuttered out.

She petted their soft blond tufts of hair.

Gentle touches, hugs, and kisses on the cheeks were staples for them now. Since Tiamat always lavished them with her affection when she came to visit, it would be weird if none of them had done their usual routine.

"Good morning!" she greeted the both of them with a wide smile on her face.

'Ohmygodtheyresocute!' She cooed inwardly, hugging them tightly against her.

"Hehe," Aura laughed, tickled, while Mare just smiled.

Out of the two, Aura was the most ticklish. That was why she usually wouldn't tickle Aura unless she was feeling particularly impish.

"By the way, what are we doing here, My Lady?" Aura asked once she was out of her grasp.

Tiamat remembered she wasn't there to coddle the twins. They had to finish breakfast on time so that the denizens of Nazarick could do their job properly.

Breakfast was the most important meal of the day afterall.

She cleared her throat, "That's right, I need your help to cook breakfast this morning, do you wanna help?"

Surprisingly, Mare was the first one to speak this time.

"W-will we get c-cookies too?"

Tiamat smiled at Mare knowingly. Ever since the first 'mock picnic' she had with Aura and Mare with the cheese cake, she brought different types of cake or cookies whenever she visited them.

Aura was fond of things that were savory.

Mare was fond of sweet things.

"Eh, cookies again? You had them yesterday didn't you Mare?" Aura put her hand on her hips, a childish scowl on her face.

He cradled his hands against his chest, "U-uhm, I-I can't?"

"Of course you can," she gently smiled at Mare, "In fact, should we make them after we make breakfast?"

Immediately, Mare brightened up, eyes twinkling and a small grin adorning his face.

She was actually thinking that if this went on, they would actually get spoiled. But that was fine, they deserved to be spoiled.

The breakfast for the day was Chicken and Waffles, and since she had prepared the batter needed for the waffles and had already marinated the chicken, all she needed to do was bread the chicken and cook the waffles using a waffle iron she created with 『Create Lesser Item』.

The way『Create Lesser Item』worked in the game compared to the New World was totally different. In YGGDRASIL, she was limited to things that were inside the game, which were mostly armor pieces or decorative items.

But in the New World, she could make any 'lower-ranked' item, as long as she could imagine the item itself.

'This is pretty nifty...' she thought to herself.

She assigned Aura to bread the chicken, and Mare to cook the waffles, instructing them carefully as they did so.

It was a fun activity for all three of them.

Laughter filled the kitchen as Aura and Mare splattered batter across the walls as they futilely attempted to control their strength while whisking.

While Tiamat was preparing the oil they needed to fry the chicken, someone cleared her throat by the kitchen door.

"Oya oya," Shalltear grinned while watching Aura and Mare cooking together with the Dragoness, "Chibi, you are cooking? How cute~"

"Morning, Shalltear," Tiamat responded with a dumb grin, batter splattered all over her face.

"My Lady! Ah~ to see your face so early in the morning brings joy to my heart! Moreover that apron you are wearing~," she gushed over the white frilly apron Tiamat usually cooked with.

Tiamat just laughed at Shalltear's antics, while Shalltear gushed on and on about the apron she was currently wearing and how much she wanted to sniff it. It honestly felt like Perorocino was still there with them.

"They are not mere maids, Shalltear, they are Nazarick's maids," Tiamat corrected the vampire in front of her, "They are the ones who take care of Nazarick, and if not for them, I couldn't even imagine what Nazarick would look like."

Yes, she could actually imagine it happening.

Cobwebs hanging from the ceiling, dimmed lights, dark corridors, the whole place would look like a scene straight out of a horror movie.

She inwardly shook her head at the thought.

"The effort you put to keep mere maids happy is simply sublime My Lady!"

"Go away shortstack," Aura shooed Shalltear away, "Can't you see we're busy here?"

"Piss off chibi, can't you see I'm having a nice conversation with my precious Goddess?"

Tiamat looked on fondly at the scene before her while Mare had an expression of confusion as to why his sister was fighting with another Floor Guardian. From what she remembered, Peroroncino coded Shalltear's lore so that she would continue feuding with Aura just like how Peroroncino and Bukubukuchagama had that sibling relationship in the guild.

"Hmph, Lady Tiamat asked us personally to join her in her usual activities," Aura bragged to Shalltear.

Almost immediately, a look of disbelief formed across Shalltear's features.

To have a Supreme Being including them in their activities was the highest honor possible. It meant they wanted you to be included in the things that they loved.

Aura stuck out her tongue out to the vampire in front of her.

Tiamat giggled at her childish pride.

Immediately Shalltear turned towards her and clutched her apron, "My Lady, I want to join too!"

Aura gasped in surprise, not expecting Shalltear to throw away her pride to beg the Supreme Being, knowing that the kind Lady Tiamat would probably accept, "No! That's cheating. This is our time together! Help me out Mare!"

"T-Th-That's right!"

"Now, now…" Tiamat finally decide to jump into the fray, "I think the twins are right, Shalltear. I did promise them that we will cook breakfast and cookies for today."

When the vampire heard what the Dragoness said, her excitement deflated and her eyes became sullen in a heartbeat.

As soon as Tiamat saw that, she immediately corrected herself.

"B-But, we could do other things together on another day! We can do things other than cooking, what would you like to do Shalltear?"

The liveliness returned to Shalltear's ruby eyes as she began panting, her breath becoming hard and rough. Tiamat almost thought she was ill.

"Uh, Shalltear?" she immediately put down the batter filled bowl on the counter, the situation reminded her of when one of the children at the orphanage had an asthma attack, "Shalltear, are you alright?"

"My Lady!" Shalltear grabbed both of her hands, "Do you mean it, do you really mean it?!"

"Of course," she said with a confused smile.

Her eyes twinkled like a sparkling gem, her cheeks rosy against her pale skin. Shalltear was an ethereal beauty, but her smile…

She smiled so widely that drool started to fall down to her chin, and then she said something Tiamat would never dream to come out from her pretty little mouth.

"Then please sleep with me!"

The distant sound of someone scratching a vinyl on a recorder was heard as everyone else went silent in shock.

Unaware of the response to her statement, Shalltear continued, "To have a Supreme Being sleep with me, ah~ just imagining it...I fear that my underwear has gone through a bit of a crisis."

Tiamat immediately realized, _'Ah, I said the wrong thing…'_

She should have known that Peroroncino's child would be like this.

"M-Maybe other than that?" Tiamat said, her voice small against Shalltear's as the vampire sang about what would happen tonight.

"Oi, know some shame. Can't you see how burdensome your request is for Lady Tiamat?" Aura said to Shalltear as she pulled Tiamat's hand away from Shalltear.

Sadly, her warning fell on deaf ears, "To have your body pressed against mine in the heat of ecstasy! Ahn~"

"What if I bake you cookies instead?"

"Oya? But a cookie is just a cookie right? It holds no value at all."

Aura and Mare gasped.

"How could you say that Shalltear? Each and every baked sweet was made by Lady Tiamat's bare hands!"

"O-oh my, I didn't know that…"

"T-that's right! Lady Tiamat didn't use any skill or mana to cook anything, that's why it holds more value than any sweet baked in Nazarick," Mare frowned with his eyebrows furrowed.

Tiamat just gaped at Mare in disbelief, this was the first time she had actually heard him say something that long.

'I didn't know Mare was so passionate about sweets…' she thought to herself.

"I certainly didn't know that!" Shalltear immediately kneeled on the kitchen floor. "Forgive this Floor Guardian for not knowing! I deserve to be punished My Lady."

Tiamat waved at Shalltear, "Maa, it's fine Shalltear. You're right, the cookies are nothing special," at this statement Aura and Mare gasped again and were about to rebut her statement until Tiamat raised her hand to stop them. "However, I like making them, and if anyone would be happy eating them as much as I love making them, it would bring me so much joy."

Tiamat smiled at Shalltear.

The Floor Guardians who were present could only think of one thing.

_'How generous is the Supreme Being…'_

She took the time, her important time where she should have been resting, to personally make something for the denizens of Nazarick to eat. In fact, she shouldn't have to lift even a single finger. A Supreme Being such as her could just order them to make them, but she didn't do so.

If she was this kind right now, their minds already wondered at how they would be rewarded if they did a good job.

To be perfectly honest, it wasn't like they were expecting something out of their job. To them, serving the Supreme Being was its own reward. However, with the Dragoness lavishly spoiling them, was it wrong for them to want more?

"O-Of course, My Lady!" Mare started speaking, "Anyone would be happy to eat whatever you cooked."

"I agree! If it's you My Lady, I'm sure they'll finish everything, and if they don't, we'll finish them, isn't that right Mare?"

At his sister's statement, Mare nodded his head vigorously.

Tiamat looked at the twins fondly. It warmed her heart to see them reassuring her in their own way. She petted both of them at the same time, as her heart gushed with joy.

"Awh, I'm really happy you think that way."

"Then…" Shalltear said, "For you to bake cookies for me will be the highest honor My Lady."

Tiamat breathed a sigh of relief, at least that was better than sleeping together with Shalltear.

"Then what kind of cookies would you like Shalltear?"

"What about blood cookies?"

Tiamat's eye twitched.

_'How the hell am I supposed to make that? I never made something as crazy as that back on Earth…'_

She could imagine, as the blood contracted and became firm, the myoglobins expelled from the cookie, the flour left to dry, resulting in a metal coin with the stench of blood.

Perhaps for Shalltear, it would taste like an unimaginable, indescribable sweet-a heavenly piece of ambrosia. But there was no way Tiamat would procure human blood just to test that out.

"Err, I don't think that's possible Shalltear, it could probably ruin the oven…" Tiamat pondered as she continued dipping chicken to fry in oil. "What about red velvet cookies? At least they're maroon. That's close enough to blood, don't you think?"

"Then, I will eat whatever you prepare for me, My Lady!"

"Even better, you'll join the twins in making cookies this morning!"

That morning, after cooking and serving breakfast to the homunculi maids and the Pleiades, she asked Yuri to deliver one portion to each of the Floor Guardians, while Aura, Mare, and Shalltear ate breakfast together on the sixth floor.

Afterwards, they baked cookies together, and she believed it was safe to say that Shalltear wouldn't be joining her in the kitchen anymore after this because of the cookie dough that kept on getting into the crevices of her long nails.

But she still enjoyed that cookie.

To the disappointment of the twins, Tiamat didn't allow them to eat the cookies so early in the morning, but she promised them that they would get the cookies by dinner time.

Leaving the twins and Shalltear to their duties, Tiamat continued cooking lunch. She prepared some clam chowder with sourdough bread. For dinner she piled on layers and layers of lasagna.

For the fifth day, she parted the sea.

Nah, she chose the healthier option for the day. Avocado salad with eggs for breakfast, shrimp taco for lunch, and quiche for dinner, along with cinnamon rolls for dessert.

All in all, she cooked twenty meals for forty one homunculi maids, eight floor guardians. She made sure to make bite sized portions for Victim, the Seven Pleiades sisters including Aureole, Sebas, and herself.

That was sixteen-hundred meals in total.

Why did Tiamat make this calculation you ask?

Well, that was because on the sixth day while she was preparing breakfast, she heard a small _ding!_

She immediately spun around, and saw Yuri in the middle of helping her with cooking preparations.

"Yuri, did you hear that?"

"I didn't hear anything, My Lady," Yuri confusedly answered.

She stopped everything she was doing and immediately checked her messages.

『No messages』

'_Just what is that sound?_' she wondered. She checked the oven, but none of the ovens were even turned on. She checked the timer, and none of the timers were turned on as well.

Her stomach churned, and she whispered something into thin air. Something that she hadn't even opened once since they arrived in the New World.

"Status…"

『STATUS:

Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons

Level: 101 (20/999999)

HP 『Exceeds Limits With God Beast 』

MP 90

PHY. ATK 35

PHY. DEF 『Exceeds Limits With World Guardian 』

Agility 45

MAG. ATK 55

MAG. DEF 『Exceeds Limits With World Guardian 』

Resistance 100

Special 100

Total 725+

You have acquired the『Cook』class.

Congratulations, you have acquired a new skill!

『Cooking』

_You can cook and make something to eat. It may not be edible_

_Bonus 80% chance of success to all food items you make_

Congratulations, you have created 60 new recipes! They will be recorded in your 『Cooking』skill!』

The sudden level up notification threw Tiamat off guard and she hurriedly put down her whisk and pancake batter filled bowl on the kitchen table.

"Yuri, I leave today's meal preparations to you. The pancake batter is ready; all you have to do is cook it and put some fruit on it. For lunch, please use the marinated meat from last night, and for dessert I have prepared Tiramisu for everyone to enjoy. I'll prepare for dinner later."

"As you wish My Lady," Yuri replied. "But if you would excuse my impertinence, is something wrong?"

Tiamat was just about to cross the kitchen door when she halted and turned back to look at Yuri. At her request, she had asked the kitchen staff to take a break, so it was just her and Yuri who occasionally helped her with cooking.

The kitchen felt a lot bigger with only her and Yuri in it.

"I need to talk to Ainz about something. Once again, I'm sorry Yuri. It's alright if breakfast gets delayed. Please ask Sous-Chef for help," with that, she left the kitchen and with the familiar tone of 『Message』, she quickly asked where her friend was.

(_ _|||)

Both the Overlord and the Goddess where in the Throne Room. The heavy atmosphere of the Throne Room fit their current mood as Tiamat told Ainz what had just happened.

"Are you saying you can't look at this?" Tiamat frustradely asked him.

She was pointing to the square in front of her, while moving it about with her index finger. She jabbed at the writing that was so clearly displayed by the square in question.

The Dragoness stood over to his left while he was sitting on the Throne itself.

Ainz just stared at her calmly and explained, "Yes. I'm aware that status screens still exist, but you do know you couldn't share status screens even in YGGDRASIL right?."

"Okay, then can't you check? Since you're the Guild Leader, you could check the status of every player in your guild right?"

Ainz shook his head. "No. Ever since we have arrived here, the only thing I could check was my own 『Status』. I couldn't even see whether you're with me or not or where you are."

"What?" she replied, clearly confused. "That's not possible...we're players from YGGDRASIL. Shouldn't the features the shitty devs added transfer over? Everything else has so far..."

Ainz remained silent as he put his skeletal fingers on his chin, thinking. After a long pause, he replied. "I have a theory from earlier, and if what you said is true, this means that my theory is correct."

Tiamat just waited in anticipation as she listened intently to her friend.

"To be honest, when we first arrived in this New World, there were some things that were not in line with YGGDRASIL rules. Such as your Dragons."

"My dragons…?"

"Yes, since your dragons are summons, their summoning time should have expired. However all of your dragons are still here, including the 『Seraphim Empyrean』 you summoned when you defended Carne Village. Just like my『Death Knight』, once summoned, they can exist indefinitely in this reality. However, I also have the power to dismiss them whenever I want."

At the slight implication, Tiamat immediately responded, "No!"

"Hm?"

"If you're saying that I have to dismiss my Dragons to test a mere theory, then _no_," she firmly replied. In a fit of rage, she unconsciously activated『Phobos Ambience』.

A cosmetic effect of her passive aura was golden eyes, a feature that Ainz didn't really pay attention to back in YGGDRASIL, but one that he couldn't take his eyes off now. Her eyes turned gold were one of the most gorgeous things he had ever seen. Back when they were still playing in YGGDRASIL, even though the setting of her character was one of the most generic he had ever seen in the game, he couldn't deny that it worked well with her.

Her ever shifting golden eyes refracted light like a kaleidoscope.

"They're just summons. You can always summon them again afterwards," he couldn't understand why she was acting this way.

Tiamat scowled at Ainz and something bubbled inside her. Just the thought of having them disappear made her feel a surge of protectiveness, her body shook with unusual rage that kept building and building, threatening to spill out of her.

She had never felt this angry before.

She quashed down her anger before it could blow up. There was no use in getting angry; she knew what Ainz said was just a theory and it wasn't like he was asking her to kill her dragons in front of her.

"No means no. I wouldn't trade them for anything."

Ainz sighed. "Very well. It doesn't matter anyways. Your summons and mine would probably work the same way," he said, trying his best to diffuse the situation.

As soon as he said that, her eyes lost their golden color and returned back to their usual peaceful amethyst.

"Then, that's settled. Unless they die, which I'll make sure myself they're not, I'm not going to dismiss them at all."

"That is fine," Ainz relented. Too bad her friend was much more emotional than he was. "Unless your summons die, or are dismissed, they will still be in the same reality as ours."

"Alright, that makes sense. But what about the level?"

"Since I couldn't see it, I will use『Appraisal』to check your『Status』. Try not to resist it." Tiamat nodded and as soon as she did, he raised his right palm at her and said, "『Appraisal』."

The reason Ainz had told her not to resist was because Tiamat had the highest Resist stat in Ainz Ooal Gown. As a result, she automatically disabled most debuffs or even certain types of divination spells such as『Higher True Appraisal』.

As soon as Ainz raised his hand to use the spell on her, he could feel her slightly resisting the spell. It felt like scooping water with his hands, only for the water to slowly seep through the gaps.

Tiamat felt a shiver of discomfort. For her, it felt like someone was trying to find something, as if rummaging through her innermost secrets. Reflexively, she resisted the spell and the magic circle that Ainz casted shattered into glass like pieces and faded into thin air.

Ainz's hand hovered above her head for a while, but suddenly a 'crack' was heard.

"Oi oi, I told you not to resist didn't I? This spell is hard enough to cast with your high resist you know..."

She just gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry, it just feels so... uncomfortable," she shook her body as if to express the discomfort she experienced. "It felt like a bunch of worms were crawling through my body, urgh…"

Once again he casted the spell only for it to break again.

Ainz could only sigh.

"Sorry…" Tiamat sheepishly apologized.

"Have you disabled your passive Resist skills?"

"Yes, 『Scale of Virtue』is off and I didn't resist your 『Appraisal』either."

"Umu, that means there's no way my 『Appraisal』 would ever work. Let me call Albedo. Since she's the administrator for Nazarick, she might have a way to view your Status."

The soft _ding _of 『Message』echoed through the Throne Room as Ainz called Albedo to the room. A few seconds later, a 『Gate』opened before Tiamat and Ainz and the winged overseer stepped out.

Immediately after the『Gate』closed, Albedo lowered herself in a bow and asked, "What may this lowly one do for you, Supreme Ones?"

The only thing Tiamat think was, '_Holy shit that was quick._'

Literally, it only took Albedo a few seconds of her time to immediately teleport to the Throne Room.

Albedo looked up to see the Dragoness that stood by the obsidian throne, while the Overlord was sitting upon the throne, while giving them a smile befitting of the Overseer of Nazarick.

Ainz nodded at Albedo. "I hope I did not disturb your work Albedo, but there is something that I wish to check."

"Not at all, My Lord. I will do anything you ask of me," was her sincere reply.

"Then, please open Nazarick's status page,specifically Tiamat's."

"Certainly."

She walked up to his right, her designated place as the Overseer of Nazarick and immediately did what Ainz asked of her.

Thankfully, through Albedo, Ainz could see the status of the players currently in Nazarick, which only included Ainz and Tiamat at the moment, as well as the Floor Guardians. Albedo then opened her screen and clicked on Tiamat's Status.

Ainz looked over the text box before him and compared it to his own.

He saw clearly with his undead eyes, written next to her name:『Level 101』

As soon as Albedo saw this, her yellow eyes widened and she immediately applauded. "Congratulations My Lady, we must celebrate!"

"T-Thank you Albedo…" Tiamat awkwardly replied, stealing a glance at Ainz who wasn't listening to Albedo.

"How...just... how?" Ainz stared at the screen in wonder.

"How am I supposed to know…" she lamely replied.

He sank further down into the throne.

"So," he sighed. "You were cooking."

"Yes."

"For the homunculi maids."

"Yes, and for the Floor Guardians and the Pleiades Sisters as well."

"And somehow you gained a new job class by cooking."

"...yes."

He sighed even harder into his skeletal palms.

"You're at max level, right?"

"Yes. Well, my excess experience pool was just about full anyways until this happened."

"How is that possib—you know what, never mind. We have more to do now that we know about this."

He straightened his back, his red orbs unfocused as he stared up at the ceiling.

"To think that you'd get to level 101 before me…"

At his statement, Tiamat tried to console her friend, "It's not like I wanted this to happe-" before she was suddenly cut off by Ainz's uproarious laughter.

He laughed and laughed until a green aura shone around him.

"Don't worry about it. I'm not upset at all. On the contrary I am excited," Ainz chuckled. "To think that we still have not hit our limits… just how much more can we level up?"

Tiamat stared at her friend as he laughed for the first time since they came to the New World.

"Anyways," Ainz continued, "With your racial class maxed out, there is no way you can increase your racial skills."

"True. Dragons for the win, I guess."

Ainz carried on, "Then that means we can gain levels through new job classes. In other words, through grinding...huh. Fairly simple."

"Momo-chan, it's not like I deliberately did it, you know…"

"Find other skills that you don't have and try to repeat related activities until you get more job classes."

She stared at him with such disdain that he flinched a bit.

"What? Did I do something?"

"Are you suggesting that I...grind?" she asked him in disbelief.

"Yes, what else could it possibly be?" he replied, confused.

"B-but, it's my week off Momo-chan, and I really don't want to spend it grinding…"

"Umu, understandable. But you still have to do it because I can't. I tolerate your summons so you have to do your fair share."

"Nuuuu," she groaned, "Are you insane?! I cooked four meals a day for five consecutive days for most of Nazarick! If I have to grind manually…" she felt queasy just at the thought of it. "Ah, is this my punishment for never working in the first place?" she asked no one in particular.

"Perhaps." Ainz replied flatly.

"Killjoy Ainz. Even after you changed your name, you're still a killjoy…" but she relented, like she always did. "Fine, then I'll try wielding a weapon. What do you want me to do? Pierce a straw doll with a sword a thousand times?"

Ainz was ignored her sarcasme as he replied, "Go to Ashurbanipal and try to read more about spells. Then try one specific spell to see if you can gain a new job class."

"You...you are unbelievable."

"Then please go ahead. I still have to go to E-Rantel to instill my reputation."

"Huh? But aren't you Mythril?"

"Yes," Ainz sighed, "But you are currently the talk of the town, so it's harder for me to build anything with my reputation…"

"Pfft," A small giggle escaped her, "Sorry about that."

"At this point, it might be even better to put you in E-Rantel instead of me. I was actually thinking of going to the Kingdom."

"The Kingdom…? Why?" she asked, genuinely curious.

"I have decided that ever since I changed my name to look for our guild mates. They are probably somewhere in this world. The more reputation I have, the easier it will be for them to find me. To find Ainz Ooal Gown."

Tiamat just stood there, silent.

"I have to go. I look forward to your results."

She waved him goodbye, and Ainz teleported to his room.

Now it was just her and Albedo.

"Albedo, you heard that, right?"

"Yes."

"Then please answer my question honestly."

Albedo who was situated at the right side of the throne immediately kneeled. The pressure that the Dragoness exerted was maginifect in magnitude. Someone as lowly as her couldn't possibly tell what was on the mind of a Supreme Being, or even to presume her current emotion.

"Yes, My Lady. As the Overseer of Nazarick I will answer any of your questions honestly."

"What do you think about Ainz's plan?"

Tiamat just looked at the empty throne, her eyes devoid of emotion. When Albedo looks up to meet her gaze, she saw a never ending wave of coldness.

"I-I think that Lord Ainz's plan is perfect, My Lady. If Lord Ainz's goal is to look for the other members of Ainz Ooal Gown then we will do _anything_ to make it happen."

Tiamat shifted her gaze towards the kneeling Albedo. "Then… another question."

"Of course My Lady."

"Who is more important? Me or Ainz?"

(_ _|||)

Yuri walked towards the 10th Floor, specifically to Ashurbanipal, the great library of Nazarick.

As soon as she opened the heavy double doors, she could immediately see the Dragoness of Nazarick sitting on the floor with mountains of books stacked up on the floor around her. She was currently reading one related to divine magic, and Yuri saw that she was on the last few pages of the book.

Yuri bowed to greet Tiamat but she was far too engrossed in the book she was currently reading.

"Good afternoon My Lady. I came to inform you that it is lunch time. Are you perhaps planning to join the homunculi maids again?" she asked.

Tiamat hm-ed in reply. Ever since she ate with Albedo she made it a habit for her to eat at the cafeteria instead of eating in her own room to form close relationships with the homunculi maids. Following her example, the Pleiades started to eat in the cafeteria as well.

She managed to bond with some of the homunculi maids who ate at the same table as her, asking them what they liked or disliked about Nazarick. The replies Tiamat had been getting had been overwhelmingly positive. The maids claimed that there was nothing they hate about Nazarick, a fact that made her feel fuzzy inside.

However, she felt like the maids were employees just trying to please her, their manager.

But apparently that wasn't the case.

The maids did take great pleasure in working for the well being of Nazarick. They considered it the highest honor, the reason for their existence.

She had asked one maid to teach her how to sew, and one maid was about to teach her today during lunch.

"No Yuri. I won't eat lunch for today, please apologize to the homunculi maid in my stead."

"If you don't mind me asking My Lady, how long have you been in Ashurbanipal?"

Tiamat finally looked up and moved her gaze from the pages of the book to sheepishly look Yuri in the eye, "Uh, since this morning."

"Please take a break My Lady." Yuri immediately chastised her.

Such incidences happened all the time. Once the Dragoness was invested in something, she focused on it until she finished. Yuri feared that this would be detrimental to the Supreme Being's mental health.

One time she cooked cheese cake from night till dawn.

Yuri knew that it was rude for her to give a Supreme Being advice. But to Tiamat, this meant that Yuri was comfortable enough in her presence that she would tell her what was wrong and steer her back to the right path.

That was why when Yuri had chastised Tiamat out of frustration for the very first time, Tiamat's eyes jerked open and she leapt up to hug Yuri.

Usually at the prospect of food, she would stop everything she was doing. But this time, Tiamat was undeterred.

"Later," she simply replied and closed her book to take another one from her pile.

As the hours passed by, the sound of turning pages would occasionally break the silence of the corner she was occupying. Tiamat bore a serious expression, all traces of playfulness gone from her amethyst eyes as she poured over the pages of the books related to magical skills.

She had read through countless books that she thought could have been related to magic, from fantasy novels, to skill books, to even magic-type mercenary summon books, she had _almost_ read them all.

All the while, Yuri patiently stood behind her, unmoving like a statue, as she waited until the Dragoness finished.

'_I wonder what could have distressed the Supreme Being so,_' Yuri worried to herself. During the morning everything had been fine, but the Dragoness had suddenly claimed that she had heard something and immediately ran out of the kitchen.

She wondered what could cause such a reaction.

Tiamat let out a small sigh behind her book as she felt Yuri's heavy stare watching her slightest movements.

"I'll eat later Yuri. I promise I will be back by dinner," Tiamat smiled at Yuri. She knew that Yuri was assigned to accompany her, but it didn't make her feel any less uncomfortable to make her wait with her. Driven by guilt, she tried to reassure Yuri.

Yuri responded with a skeptical gaze before letting out a deep breath and then bowing.

"As you wish My Lady," she didn't want to leave the Supreme Being, but she still had to prepare for dinner.

With that in mind, Yuri bowed again and left the library. Tiamat let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding in as soon as Yuri was out the door.

There were several different types of books in Ashurbanipal ranging from monster data, magic items, event items, cosmetic skins, novels like fanfiction about the world of YGGDRASIL, game guides, or even public domain books from earth.

Tiamat was currently looking through the latter.

With the wide array of game guides duplicated into in-game books, it was very difficult to find specific works from Earth that she wanted to read.

She hadn't paid too much attention to it since they arrived in the New World, but her memories and cognitive abilities as Tiamat were so much better than back on Earth. As long as she focused hard enough, she could easily understand the contents of the book in no time.

In a few hours, she had effortlessly sped through half of the books.

As soon as she finished reading, she was going to decide what to grind in particular.

Time passed by and Titus, the Chief Librarian of Ashurbanipal, could only stare at the Last Supreme Being who was currently sprawled out on the floor, reading.

Even though Titus knew about the Last Supreme Beings, this was actually his very first time to have laid his eyes upon the Dragoness's form, since the Supreme Being herself had never made her way to the tenth floor before.

He had read about her lore. Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons.

The legendary records from the books of Ashurbanipal mentioned the Dragoness when she was first born into the world. At first, she was just a fragile youngling, but as she grew and grew, more and more people were threatened by her.

Together, the despicable humans and elves conspired against her until her soul was scattered across the nine realms, making it impossible for the young Dragoness to be resurrected..

However, Lord Touch-Me somehow managed to do the impossible.

He travelled far and wide through freezing plains and scorching oceans of magma, looking for her soul that was spread across all nine realms. After months of hard work, Lord Touch Me had finally managed to summon the Dragoness to Nazarick.

Shortly afterwards, she was invited to join Ainz Ooal Gown as a Supreme Being.

That was the beginning of the story of how Ainz Ooal Gown helped her to wreak vengeance on her persecutors and how she ascended to become a Divine Being, the Goddess amongst all Dragons.

He could still remember two particular lines in the book called "Forum".

One was, "Bruh, that chinese knock-off bitch ass dragon was so fucking hard to kill man."

And the other, "She tanked like 7 reality slashes wtf. How tf is that fair shitty ass devs?"

Even Titus, with his vast knowledge and abilities as the Chief Librarian of Ashurbanipal, had no idea what he was reading. The profanities written about her made his blood boil in anger. He could not understand why the Supreme Being was treated this way. Moreover, he had no clue what the abbreviations in the books meant.

He knew so little about the Goddess even though he spent countless hours combing the Grand Library for information. He wanted to know more about the Supreme Being, but there was so little lore surrounding her and the most information that he could obtain at best was public knowledge in Nazarick.

Because of that, he immediately asked the Dragoness if there was anything he could help with when he noticed that she had come to visit the Grand Library. After all, that was his duty as Chief Librarian.

But not once had she even called on him.

Afraid of disturbing the Supreme Being, he stood far away, observing her.

Hoping that he that the Supreme Being would eventually call on him, he thought of the questions he desired to ask her.

A few more hours passed before Tiamat suddenly stood up from where she was lying down and began to return the books one by one to their designated places.

Grateful for a chance to help, Titus immediately approached her.

"My Lady, please do not troubleth thy holy being with such a plebeian task."

"No, it's alright Titus," she gave him a warm smile. "I'm the one taking them out, so I should be responsible and return them to where they originally belonged."

"O I beareth no intention to contradict thy divine will, nevertheless, please allow thy humble servant to aid thee in thy task."

Tiamat stared at him for a few seconds before nodding."Very well," she pointed to her right at a pile that was untouched. "Please don't move those books. I will return later tonight after dinner to continue reading them."

"Thy word is mine will, My Lady."

Titus nodded and with that they moved the books she had read back to the shelves before she teleported to the kitchen.

'_Oh, how foolish I must be to hath forsaken the blessing of conversing with a Supreme One,_'Titus forlornly thought to himself as he stared at the spot where Tiamat once stood.

(_ _|||)

Upon arriving, she baked a rather messy-looking pizza for dinner, Each pizza has a different topping so that those who ate them can choose whatever they liked. Even though the shape of the pizza was mangled, it still tasted delicious.

As usual, Yuri was helping her around the kitchen, the atmosphere more somber than usual. Usually she hummed as she cooked, but at the moment, the air was suffocated with a long silence.

Later on after dinner, Yuri had heard that Albedo-sama was also spacing out during work which wasn't like her at all.

She wondered what happened between those two.

After her last conversation with Albedo, Tiamat stayed quiet for two whole days. She even stopped cooking entirely after that day.

Her actions, or rather lack of action, raised a lot of concerns from the Floor Guardians and Yuri as well.

Even when Sebas left for his mission with Solution in the Kingdom, she just smiled at them and nodded, but didn't say anything.

Aura and Mare even came down to her room to visit her, but she couldn't bring herself to smile.

Tiamat spend the rest of her vacation by reading almost half the books in Ashurbanipal, she still hadn't decided on what she wanted to grind. Since job classes could only be raised or obtained through leveling up, she had to grind a ridiculous amount of EXP to generate a new skill.

This caused her a lot of headaches.

As she flipped to the word printed on the books, her memory keeps playing back to what happened two days ago at the Throne Room with Albedo and the ringing in her head grew sharper and sharper, and she tried to dismiss them. The ringing sounds were making it hard for her to focus.

She sighed. Her head was spinning and she felt something in the pit of her stomach, as if she had eaten something distasteful. Her stomach churned with anxiety, but she didn't know from what. All she felt was a strong but vague sense that something wasn't right.

The familiar feeling of her body shutting down flooded her being. She stopped whatever she was doing and her brain froze. It felt like an invisible wall suddenly descended around her and started to close in. Her breathing became ragged, and she felt helpless.

Trapped.

It was a strange feeling of wanting to break out and being unable to move.

Yuri heard the Goddess's irregular breathing and immediately ran towards her. "Lady Tiamat?!"

Titus also came to approach the Dragoness, "What ails you My Lady?"

But it was of no use; despite having a keen hearing, Tiamat couldn't hear anything. All she could hear was the deafening sound of her heart slamming against her chest and how cold the room was.

The biting cold against her skin.

The absence of sunlight.

It was so _coldcoldcold_.

Just like her room back on Earth.

Without any warning, she pushed Yuri away and teleported to her room in Nazarick, making sure the place was locked before she cried herself to sleep despite having a『Ring of Sustenance』.

(_ _|||)

Sebas walked through the red carpeted hallway. He walked past countless doors before he stopped and knocked on one of them.

"Mistress, it is me, Sebas," he announced to the person on the other side of the door before opening it.

He was greeted with the sight of Solution dressed in a yellow dress fit for nobility, and as soon as he laid his eyes on her, she immediately bowed.

"Forgive my unsightly conduct from earlier, Sebas-sama."

"There is no need to apologize. You were simply doing your job," Sebas kindly explained to Solution.

Currently Sebas and Solution are staying at the『Shining Golden Pavilion』because they were on a mission given to them by Lord Ainz to travel to the Re-Estrize Kingdom. He assumed that Solution felt guilty because of the scene in the dining room from earlier.

If anyone from the dining room had compared her then and now, they would probably be stunned. But of course, it was impossible for the loyal servant of Nazarick to make that kind of blunder.

After a brief silence between the two of them, Solution raised her head to ask Sebas, "Sebas-sama, How is Lady Tiamat?"

Sebas shook his head. "I have no idea what happened to Lady Tiamat. I could only guess that something truly disastrous happened if it was enough to cause such distress in a Supreme Being."

"Actually I heard from Yuri that Lady Tiamat had been locking herself in her room every night. Yuri tried knocking, but she hasn't received any reply as of yet."

"It is not like her to act in such a way, did anything else happened?"

"I have asked, but Yuri is as lost as we are Sebas-sama…"

That night, most of the denizens of Nazarick were awash with worrying thoughts regarding their Last Supreme Being. But despite all their concern and good will, they could only wait.

(_ _|||)

Tiamat slowly opened her eyes to a familiar ceiling.

Her bleary eyes lethargically focused on the white washed curtains that hung atop her bed, and she curled herself even further into a ball.

She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.

'_How childish…_' was the thought that had been shamefully running through her head all the time.

She had a panic attack in front of Yuri.

She buried her head in her pillows. The soft pillows bounced against the frame of her face as she buried herself deep inside the softness and the fluffiness of it.

"Nuu…" her voice was muffled by the softness of her pillows.

She didn't know how to face Yuri anymore. She was supposed to act composed and wise beyond her years, but apparently _Hannah_ was interfering with her mental state.

She finally sat on the bed.

'_You know, let's just forget this ever happened. Yup!'_ But everytime she tried to brush it off, the memory stuck to her like a leech and her face burned scalding hot from the shame.

Finally, she decided to escape to E-Rantel for a few days and return to Nazarick once she got a hold of herself. Immediately she activated the『Scale of Ragnarok』and teleported to the Sixth Floor.

When she landed, as usual, she was swarmed by her baby dragons. After giving them many hugs and kisses, she reluctantly jumped on Pentakrisis, opened『Gate』on top of the Colosseum and flew through the portal to E-Rantel after waving a brief goodbye to Aura and Mare.

When she finally arrived, she breathed a sigh of relief. It was like putting on a mask, so that no one knew who she was. A mask that let her escape all the expectations of the Guardians.

Her heart filled with ease as she landed before the Gates of E-Rantel, surprising a few merchants who were trying to get into the city, while the guards who were already used to it merely flinched.

"Good morning," she greeted the guards as Pentakrisis assisted her in getting down from his back by lowering his head. As a gesture of thanks, she rubbed the scales on his cheek, which he happily received as his tail thumped against the ground.

"Hannah-sama!" the guards excitedly greeted her.

It had been exactly a week after the Pandemonium and the last time they saw the Silver Priestess was when she was at death's door. Even after being nearly killed from such an incident, her skin bore no sign of conflict and they could only gape at her in awe.

They were elated that the Priestess was recovering well.

"How are your injuries, Hannah-sama?" one guard asked her, wanting to make sure that she is indeed healthy.

Tiamat looked at the guard and covered up her worries with a smile, "Yes, as you can see…" she twirled for them. "I am perfectly fine. Thank you for worrying."

"By the way, have you heard Hannah-sama?" one guard said, excited to get a chance to talk with the Savior of E-Rantel.

"Heard of what?" she asked, as she dismissed Pentakrisis with a nod of her head. An immense gust of wind interrupted the staggered guard.

"Right after you left, a new team popped up and got promoted to Mythril in one day, just like you!"

She chuckled at his excitement. "Is that so?"

Seeing the pretty lady humor their idle chat they immediately began to swarm Tiamat, but she hastily escaped from the front gate and into the city.

She waved them goodbye and went on her way to the Adventurers' Guild.

There was only person who could've jumped all the way to Mythril and one day: Ainz. He promised her that he would rise to Adamantine faster than her anyways.

She wondered what kind of disguise he was using.

She assumed that it was most probably his『Perfect Warrior』seeing that he left with a suit of armor on, while Nabe was going to back him up using her magic.

Compared to the other armors they had in the guild, Ainz's armor was, sorry to say, not up to par. But if he brought some other flashy armor that belongs to their guildmates, they ran the risk of drawing unwelcome attention.

'_Wait, didn't I already do that with Pentakrisis…?_' she shrugged and shook the thought out of her head.

The metals used to create Legendary Items were apparently unknown in their current location. Instead the greatest, strongest metal they had seen so far was Adamantite, whose grade was obviously lower than the Prismatic Ores.

If someone was to use『Higher True Appraisal』on Ainz and found out that the armor he had was not made from native materials, it would definitely become a troublesome matter.

As she walked through the streets of E-Rantel towards the Adventurers' Guild, she was greeted by countless citizens to whom she nodded her head and smiled in acknowledgement.

Since it was late morning, the city was lively and filled with the shouts of merchants promoting their goods.

There were also children running around her playing hide and seek, to which she chuckled warm heartedly.

Funnily enough, just outside the Adventurers' Guild, a bunch of children were playing with one another and it seemed that one of them was casting imaginary spells. As soon as he spotted Tiamat, he pointed the spell towards her.

In response, she dramatically pretended that the spell hit her in the stomach. The kid was shocked, he didn't expect the Silver Priestess to react to his joke, but soon the shock was replaced with joyous laughter.

The scene warms the hearts of the people who saw it.

She laughs and waved the children goodbye, to which they responded with vigor, and went into the Adventurers' Guild.

As soon as she entered, guild hall erupted into a flurry of activity. Met with the familiar sound of boisterous adventurers, Tiamat let out a small exhale of happiness.

Stories and tales of what happened during the Pandemonium had reached each and every adventurer's ears.

There was not a single soul in E-Rantel who didn't know about the Silver Priestess.

But after the incident she mysteriously disappeared for an entire week. They thought that her wound was so great that she either died or was in critical condition. However, they never expected that the Silver Priestess would return after just one week.

"Morning everyone," she beamed, and walked straight to the receptionist's table.

"Hannah-sama!" She greeted her with such enthusiasm, that Tiamat was shocked at the shrillness of her voice.

"Yes, good morning to you too." Tiamat smiled at her.

"Did you come here to take the letter?"

"No, I only came to take quests. Why? Is there a letter for me?" she asked the receptionist with raised eyebrows.

"Yes, Hannah-sama." She rummaged through her desk and found a silver key to her drawer. Once she opened the dark wooden drawer a single letter with the wax insignia of a blue rose stamped on top of it.

"This letter is from the Adamantine Team in the Kingdom under the name Blue Rose," the receptionist explained.

"Blue Rose?" She muttered unconsciously.

"Oh my," the receptionist gasped in shock. "You haven't heard of them? They're an all female Adamantine Ranked Adventurer Group in the Re-Estize Kingdom, Hannah-sama."

"Is that so?" Tiamat replied as she looked at the letter. The blue insignia was a stark contrast against the fading yellow brown of the parchment.

Assuming that it had something to do with the guild, she thought it would be better for her to read the letter right away. But when she looked behind her, she was met with a horde of curious eyes.

Afterall, Blue Rose was a famous Adamantine Ranked Group. For them to be sending a letter to the Silver Priestess would pique the interest of anyone who heard.

"Can I borrow one of the guild's private rooms? I want to read this letter as soon as possible," she asked wrly, as she looked at the adventurers crowding around her.

"Of course, Hannah-sama! Right this way."

The receptionist immediately led her towards one of the empty rooms, elated to be in the Silver Priestess's good graces. Especially since a rumor was being spread around that the Priestess wouldn't be staying in E-Rantel anymore because of the Guild Master's blunder. Though she had no idea of what Pluton-san did.

She brought her to a simple room with a wide window, where two sofas sat adjacent of each other and a simple wooden coffee table.

She opened the door so that Tiamat could enter the room. "You can use this room for as long as you wish, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat walked inside the room and turned back to look at the receptionist. "Thank you."

She sighed in relief as she closed the door and sat on the sofa. No matter how many times it happened, she still couldn't get used to the awed gazes of the people around her. Now that she was all alone, she had never felt more comfortable.

Tiamat looked at the letter in her right hand, flipping over the parchment and breaking the seal wax. She opened the letter to see that inside it was another piece of parchment.

The size of the smaller parchment was identical to the size of event invitation pamphlets back on Earth. The aroma of ink struck her nose as she flipped through it. The invitation was written using the language of the New World. Thankfully, she was much more educated regarding the language of the New World compared to when she had arrived. At least she could read most children's books, but it was still fairly difficult to write in the language of the New World as she didn't get much practice.

The style of writing on the parchment was extremely neat and elegant, adorned with cursive and decorative lines, indicating that the person who wrote it was likely of a high status.

"THE Company of Hannah Annafelowz, the Silver Priestess, is requested at the Rose Garden. Please visit when you are able. -Blue Rose." below it was another insignia of the Adamantine team stamped on the lower right corner.

'_The hell…_' Tiamat initially thought that Blue Rose had found out that the Pandemonium was staged by her so that she can rise to Adamantine, but apparently it was just a mere summon.

She thought long and hard before finally coming to the decision that she could just ignore the letter. It wasn't something that she really wanted to do. She had her reputation in E-Rantel afterall, but the smallest part of her mind screamed out that perhaps it was alright to look into it for a little bit.

Judging by the reaction of the other Adventurers who eavesdropped on Tiamat's and the receptionist's conversation, they seemed to be a famous Adamantine team.

However, there was no set time or date for the summon, so yup. She was just going to ignore this invitation.

She stood up and left the room, closing the door behind her and went out to thank the receptionist who suddenly appeared from around the corner.

"Oh," the receptionist was surprised to see her leave the room so early. She glanced at the clock, it hadn't even been ten minutes. "Was the room not to your liking?"

"No," Tiamat smiled and the receptionist breathed a sigh of relief. "I finished reading the letter. But it wasn't anything important…"

At this, the receptionist balked. Were her ears fooling her? Did the Priestess really just say that the greatest adventurer team in the Kingdom weren't important?

"By the way, I also wanted to ask, where's the _Rose Garden_?" she ignored all the excited chattering behind her. "Is it somewhere near E-Rantel?"

The receptionist couldn't believe what she was hearing. For a moment, the receptionist didn't even realize her jaw was open before hurriedly closing it. "H-Hannah-sama, you really don't know?" she nervously laughed it off. "You must be joking...right?"

"_Nope_." she smiled at the receptionist sweetly while having a slight panic attack. She smiled brightly, hoping that most people in the room would think that she was most definitely joking. But to the adventurers, it looked like she really didn't know as they watched her wait for the receptionist to answer her question.

The adventurers thought she was most probably lived under a rock before coming to E-Rantel.

"T-The Rose Garden, is the Golden Princess's personal garden, Hannah-sama, located inside the castle."

"Is it a popular tourist spot?"

'No! Definitely no! It's where Blue Rose and the Princess meet to address the problems of the Kingdom!"

"I see!" Tiamat said excitedly. "Well I definitely won't go, so it's alright. By the way does the guild have any Adamantine level requests?"

The Priestess changed the topic as easily as if she was breathing, while the adventurers curiously listened with bated breath. Truly she existed on a different scale.

The receptionist took a moment to compose herself. "Yes, w-we have two different Adamantine requests for today. Which one would you want?"

"Perfect! I'll take both of them." Adamantine quests are so much harder than her previous quests that could take days at best. She wanted to get away from Nazarick for a few days anyways.

"EH?!"

"Are you sure Hannah-sama? Adamantine quests are so much different from the quest you have taken before. I'm afraid it could take you weeks, or even months depending on the difficulty of the quest itself."

"That's fine," she firmly replied.

It was practically unheard of to have a solo Adamantine adventurer take two adamantine quests at the same time. Such quests were so difficult that the adamantine ranked team sometimes had to recruit teams from the Mythril or Platinum rank to work together to finish the quest.

As soon as the receptionist heard those words, she scrambled to grab two adamantine quests from the board and gave both of them to Tiamat.

"Here you go, I wish you the best of luck, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat smiled warmly at the receptionist, beaming while looking at the two pieces of parchment in her hands.

One was a quest to relocate or to completely subjugate the small remainder of the monsters from the Pandemonium. She grew increasingly confused as she read the quest's details. If she wasn't mistaken, the remaining monsters shouldn't even add up to one hundred. Even so, the quest was classified as adamantine ranked?

Well, it wasn't like she was going to complain. All she had to do was recall all of them with 『Åsgårdsreien』.

She put the first parchment behind the second one and began reading the second quest.

The second quest requested someone to move the remaining Quagoas back to the Azerlizia Mountains.

'_Am I reading this wrong?_' she wondered to herself.

Both of the quests sounded easy. She didn't understand why they were classified as adamantine ranked.

She shrugged. It wasn't her job to tell the receptionist that she did her job wrong.

Contrary to her belief, the receptionist actually did her job correctly. Both of the quests were indeed classified as Adamantine ranked.

Regarding the first quest, the monsters were much more feral than regular monsters which caused a lot of difficulty in subjugating them. Moreover, with them spread out around the entire forest, the Adventurers were having a hard time locating all of them. Plus, the fact that the monsters from the Pandemonium all had golden eyes caused the Guild to believe that the monsters were buffed with some sort of spell to make them stronger.

Most importantly, they feared that the unknown Red Demon was still lurking around protecting the monsters. That was why the quest went to the Adamantine ranked adventurers instead.

The second quest was actually submitted by the great unifier of the Quagoa race, Pe Riyuro, through a third person out of concern. He was aware that hundreds of Quagoas had suddenly disappeared from the Mountain and went down to the Forest, in broad daylight no less. Such behavior was completely out of the norm since the Quagoas lived deep inside the mountain.

In the end, Riyuro just wanted those from his clan to be returned safely and was willing to pay any price for it.

Tiamat left the guildhall and travelled to the Forest of Tob by foot. Thankfully, she still remembered the path from where she and Hissing Vipers first went to the Forest, so once she was certain that no one was around, she immediately unfurled her wings and flew towards her destination.

Tiamat landed at the same clearing and reached out through the mental link of 『Åsgårdsreien』to all the controlled monsters spread out across the forest. Instead of going to each and every one of them one by one, she called all of them to the place she was right now and waited.

After a few minutes, a small batch of monsters appeared out of the bushes towards her as if hypnotized. Their eyes were gold from her skill, and even though some of them were injured, they dragged themselves towards where she was.

When she was sure that all of them were there, she opened a『Gate』to the Sixth Floor and directed the monsters through. As the monsters passed through the rift, she『Messaged』Aura.

[Hey Aura, I'm really sorry to be bothering you, but I just sent a bunch of monsters to your floor. You can do whatever you want with them.]

[My Lady! Finally! We've been trying to contact you!]

[Oh...yeah, sorry about tha-] she was cut off by Aura.

[Please return to Nazarick soon. Ainz-sama's been looking for you. I'll take care of the monsters you sent to me in the meanwhile.]

And then Aura cut off the message.

'_Fuck, I think I caused some trouble this time…_'

Turning her attention back to the task at hand, she looked at the Quagoas that she had not sent through the rift. She quickly ordered them to return to their homes, and monitored them from above while using an『Higher Invisibility』scroll. Once they disappeared into the depths of the mountains, she dismissed her mental domination completely.

Well, she couldn't do anything for the corpses of the Quagoas that had already been killed in battle, so she ordered the Quagoas to drag the rotting and burnt corpses of Quagoas back home.

The only thing time consuming about the whole affair was the wait. She had to wait until the monsters arrived to where she was and she has to wait for the Quagoas to return to the Frost Dragons' palace.

She had no idea how to explain to the guild about the sudden departure of the Quagoas, so she was just going to say that the Quagoas had all disappeared. She didn't really need the payment either, since the reward for the return of the Quagoas were only an eighth of the amount of money she currently had on her.

Yes, she was filthy rich by the New World's standard. Currently money was not an issue for her, thanks to the ridiculous number of quests she had completed. On the other hand, she donated most of her hard earned money for the required day to day activities of Nazarick. At this point, with her current reputation, it was okay to not finish one quest.

Not finishing one quest and failing one was different of course. That was how she convinced herself that it was alright.

In the end, it only took her a few hours and before she knew it, it was only a few hours before noon.

After deciding that she had avoided Nazarick more than enough, she decided to return. She had worried everyone for long enough.

She returned to the adventurer guild, telling the receptionist that there were some problems with the second quest, and flew with Pentakrisis away from E-Rantel before finding a secluded clearing to activate a『Gate』back to the Sixth Floor.

And as usual, her baby dragons swarmed her. A lot more gently this time.

She stroked one of them lovingly, as she thought to herself, _'They've matured.`_

But her musing was disturbed when Aura shouted out to her in a distressed voice. "LADY TIAMAT!" Aura screamed out, running towards her and dove right into the Dragoness.

Even without Aura telling him, Mare jumped down from the VIP box and ran towards his sister to hug the Supreme Being as well.

At their sudden action, Tiamat opened her eyes wide in surprise. It was not like the twins to suddenly hug her like this, and from the sound of Aura's voice, something was definitely off.

Tiamat opened her mouth, about to say sorry to the twins for making them worry about her.

However, Aura beat her to it.

"We were looking for you everywhere My Lady!" Aura cried into her stomach, clenching her dress tightly with her fists, and when her brother heard his sister crying, he also began crying.

Both twins hugged her tightly.

She furrowed her eyebrows, disappointed in herself that she had caused them to shed tears when they were supposed to be happy. She didn't deserve to explain herself.

"I'm sorry, I was wrong. I won't do that again…" she assured them as she hugged the twins back, tighter than ever before.

Aura was the one who released the hug first before dragging Tiamat away from the Arena. "That's not important right now, My Lady," quickly wiping away her tears with her sleeves. "Ainz-sama had been looking for you since last night!"

Mare also wiped his tears and nodded. "T-that's right My Lady...something bad happened."

She thought to the events of last night. The ringing in her head, was that...was that『Message』?

"Why? What happened?" she asked the twins, dreading the answer.

A wave of realization slammed into her. What Aura was talking about in 『Message』 was not about her running away from Nazarick. There was no way it was about her; she had been given the freedom to go wherever she pleased, as long as it did not threaten Nazarick.

"It's about Shalltear, s-she…she..." Aura whimpered, her ears lowered as another stream of tears cascaded down her face.

Nothing had prepared her for what Mare said to her, continuing his sister's sentence. When she listened to what Mare had said, she unconsciously cut off her mental link with her Dragonlings. They hissed in disappointment, feeling the loss of the connection.

"Shalltear betrayed Nazarick last n-night, My Lady."

(_ _|||)

**A/N: We have finally reached this point in the story, FINALLY! What did Albedo say? How did she answer Tia's question, and why did Tia react that way? Anticipate for what's about to happen in the next episode.**


	14. CHAPTER 14: Bitter Resolve

**CHAPTER 14: Bitter Resolve**

* * *

**WARNING: This chapter contains mentions of rape. You have been warned.**

* * *

Seasons didn't exist anymore.

Even so, people's lives changed daily. That included her as well.

'_Today is a good day,_' she thought to herself, humming as she walked towards the bakery, a slight spring in her steps.

The bakery was a small establishment a few blocks away from where she lived. She only knew of the bakery because someone rich had donated bread to orphans so they wouldn't starve.

It was a painstakingly long process for her to convince the chef in the bakery, but finally, _finally_, she had a proper job!

The first few weeks after she arrived, insults were hurled in her face because she didn't understand anything. How was she supposed to know that to cook bread, she needed yeast?

But she was determined to learn.

She spent most of her time researching baking and cooking in general. She watched hours and hours of videos as well as reading every baking related article she came across online so that she could do her job well.

After all, she had a plan.

Using the salary she was earning, she was going to buy bread, _real bread_, for the children at the orphanage, and when they ate it, she was going to tell them that it was her who made it.

Their boisterous laughter, wide smiles, and bright innocence were the only things that kept her going in that hell hole.

After a couple of months, the head chef had finally approved of her.

"Good job," were the two simple words he said to her.

As someone who had never been complimented by anyone before, those two words became so much more meaningful to her. They were a sign that the chef finally noticed her hard work, a sign that she was about to make those children smile brighter than ever before.

She was one step closer to her goal.

She was just closing up and cleaning the equipment for tomorrow when suddenly, the chef who usually went home earlier than her went up to her and said, "Don't come to the bakery tomorrow."

When she heard what he said, she dropped the metal bowl into the water-filled sink in shock.

"Are...are you firing me?" she couldn't believe what she was hearing. She thought she was doing a good job. So why did the chef suddenly say that she couldn't come to the kitchen tomorrow?

"No, you idiot," he sighed as he pinched his eyebrows between his fingers. "One of our customers invited you to his event. This is also work. So you better do a good job," he hissed towards her.

She exhaled in relief. At least she wasn't being fired. She smiled at the chef; after months of working with him, she knew that although he was an old coot, deep inside he was a kind old man.

He accepted her into the bakery afterall.

"Yes, I won't disappoint you," she said firmly.

Since the bakery usually catered to upscale rich citizens, it was not rare for her to find the chef interacting with his customers. Public relation was important when it came to business such as theirs. Businesses that relied on the people who could afford luxury goods.

"Good. I left his invitation on the table. It's a formal event, so wear something nice."

When tomorrow came, as the chef instructed, she didn't go to the bakery. Instead, she went to the address listed in the invitation. The location was quite far from where she lived, but she managed to find it through a GPS.

The place was beyond anything she could imagine. She thought something like this could only be available in the virtual world, not the real one.

The house stood tall, its shadow overlooking the entire estate. The cream coating of the paint shone brilliantly as the sun beat down on it, causing her to squint. Intricate fences kept the house enclosed. The roof was peaked, slanting down at an angle. The windows had royal purple curtains hanging on the other side of them, and were drawn open so that the sunlight could stream through.

As she stepped onto the pavement, she noticed a marble fountain sitting towards the right side of the expansive lawn. An angel holding a marble gardenia was perched on top, looking up towards the sky. Dark, murky water spurted from its hand, which lay gently out in front if it, as if waiting for someone to take it. The water gently fell towards the seemingly endless pool of water beneath, causing ripples to form and spread out until they were no more.

Bushes were trimmed into all sorts of animals and littered the parts of the lawn that were not taken up by the enormous fountain: tigers, elephants, giraffes, penguins, birds, snakes. All of these animal structures were life-sized.

She touched the leaf on the tiger, and as soon as she laid her fingers on it, she realized that the shrub was made out of plastic.

She walked into the extravagant house, down the little stone path to the black door. She pushed the doorbell, something vintage, she noted. No one in this century used a doorbell anymore. As it ding-donged, a yellow light surrounded the white button.

Moments later, the door was opened by a man wearing a red and black suit.

"Are you perhaps, Hannah?"

"Y-Yes."

"Hello! We've been expecting you."

At that point she didn't know that there was a Hell on the Earth she was currently living in.

She smiled back in response and the man grabbed her by the shoulders, far too close for comfort. She stole a glance around the place.

The black and white marble floor of the entrance glowed, obviously cleaned before she arrived. Stairs lay on both sides of the room, climbing tall towards the ceiling. A doorway was on either side of the room, one was a path to the kitchen, while the other was into the living room. The walls were a dark blue with silver brush swipes crossing over it, creating a shimmering effect.

Loud pounding and heavy music came from upstairs, as two men ran down the winding silver staircase, each of them holding a glass of wine. "Is that the girl from the bakery?" asked one, his blue eyes peeking at her from beneath his elegantly styled hair.

One thing was immediate.

She had felt the entire thing to be completely weird and out of place. And she didn't like the way they were staring at her.

As the man guided her up the staircase, the other served her a drink and she looked at it thinking that the drink wasn't right, that it had an odd bubble line, and that she didn't drink from it anymore.

However, one sip and whatever was inside the drink was enough to sap all the strength from her body.

She recalled how one of them pushed her down onto a sofa in one of the rooms while they hovered over her.

She recalled how weak her arms felt, almost like jelly.

The sensation of utter helplessness as she failed to push them off.

She recalled saying "no" several times.

But it didn't matter.

The next thing she remembered was them on top of her, thrusting and jabbing like animals to the point they knocked her off the bed.

She recalled the soft feeling of the carpet as her limp body fell to the floor.

They took their turns to use her as they pleased. She was certain that she was going to die.

When whatever they put into the drink finally wore off, she murmured incoherently. She was half naked, and she realized what had happened.

But it was too late.

At the young age of nineteen, the chef sold her virginity to his _sponsors_ to keep his business afloat. They continued the activity for days, maybe weeks, but all she recalled was that he had brought all of his friends along when he was done with her.

She just helplessly laid there in the room for what seemed like an eternity. Men, and occasionally even women, came and did what they wanted to. Sometimes she couldn't sleep because of the anguish, sometimes because of the physical pain. Sometimes she woke up to a man already inside her.

At that very moment, she felt like an animal.

One day she woke up in a different room. She cried for hours or maybe days or weeks. She had become accustomed to the familiarity of the room where the only comfort she had was the silent brushing of the fabric against her skin that made her feel like a living being.

She was _dirtydirtydirty_.

In the new room, with a new man, she was trained to dress up, put on makeup, and dance. She was trained to provide a number of services that the man made her practice with him, _on_ him.

She felt like a robot. She didn't feel anything. She didn't even have the will to stop or rebel. She was just taking orders.

She only survived because one of the man's parents had found her in the bedroom. They were shaking her vigorously and asked for her name. She couldn't comprehend what was happening. She didn't even remember what she was called because all she could recall and all she could feel was _painpainpain_.

She started crying, and for the first time since she arrived at the mansion, a human came towards her and hugged her. She told her that they were there to save her.

If life was a fairytale, a prince on a white horse would come and save her, bringing her away, far, far, _far_ away from this place.

But this was reality.

This was her deepest, saddest secret.

* * *

-BREAKING NEWS-

Police are taking five men into custody for suspected of kidnapping, drugging, and gang raping a woman under the initials of H.A.

It is claimed that the nineteen year old was abducted for twenty-three days and was taken to one of their homes in Tokyo where she was attacked by at least ten people.

She was later moved to a nearby hotel about five miles southwest of the estate.

The parents of the five men were the ones who reported this to the authorities and they have named their sons as the suspects who kidnapped her, according to the Press of Japan news agency.

Japan Times quoted a police official that the parents had found the girl lying on the floor under the influence of drugs after upon returning from their vacation.

The woman was immediately taken to a nearby hospital and is currently recuperating.

This is Japan Times reporting.

（◞‸◟）

"Where have you been?" His voice boomed in the massive Throne Room, and soon after, a green aura flashed over him.

"That doesn't matter. I'm here now aren't I?" she irritatedly replied to Ainz.

"That is true," Ainz relented, knowing from experience that there must be something wrong if she was acting this passive aggressively. "Very well. Look at this."

He pointed to the opened 『Master Source』, an interface that was available only to him as the Guild Leader of Nazarick and Albedo as the Overseer to oversee the state of the denizens of Nazarick and Nazarick itself.

Tiamat walked over to his left side and saw the names of the Floor Guardians written inside the floating translucent window, however, only Shalltear's name was black in color.

"It's black…"

"Yes," Ainz replied.

Amidst the sea of names written in white, only Shalltear Bloodfallen's name was shown in black.

She looked over it repeatedly, staring at the writing until she realized that her eyes were not mistaken. "I-Is she dead? When does this happen?"

Tiamat questioned Albedo. Her heart plummeted inside her. So that was the dread she had been feeling earlier.

"Last night. However, if she were dead, her name would have vanished and left a blank space. In all likelihood, this represents betrayal, My Lady."

"Well…" Ainz hesitated as if he wanted to add something, but he found Albedo's explanation comprehensive enough. "That's right," he said.

"But, there's no way!" Tiamat denied. "How can you two be so casual about this? It's impossible no matter how many times you think about it!"

That's right.

In YGGDRASIL, it was impossible.

Shalltear was an undead. Just like Ainz. This made the two of them immune to mind-affecting status effects, both positive or negative. There was no way Shalltear was mind controlled through some spell.

"I see what you mean, Tia." Ainz turned his head toward Albedo. "Could this be the effect of some being, phenomenon, or special effect that is unique to this world?"

Albedo shook her head. "I apologize Ainz-sama, but there's no way of knowing through『Master Source』."

"What should we do…" Tiamat whispered to no one in particular. Freeing someone from a mind-control spell should be fairly easy if they had a support build with a high enough Karma Rating. However those were skills that both Tiamat and Ainz did not have.

Albedo replied to Tiamat, her voice as stern as steel.

"I propose we assemble a strike force immediately. I wish to nominate myself as the commander of this expedition and, if you permit it, I would like to have Cocytus as my executive officer and include Mare in our forces, Ainz-sama."

The choice Albedo wanted to make was clear. She intended to eliminate Shalltear for her betrayal. The choices were perfect with Cocytus as the main attacker, Albedo as the tanker, and Mare as support.

"No." was Tiamat's immediate reply.

Albedo bowed to Tiamat, "I'm sorry My Lady, but there is nothing else that can be done. At this point, it's better to eliminate the root of the problem entirely." Albedo turned her head to Ainz. "Do you approve?"

"_NO!_" she roared. Her roar was so loud that the shockwave of her voice caused the flag insignias in the throne room to flap.

How could Albedo decide on that solution so easily? As if she had always been ready to kill Shalltear at a moment's notice. She didn't even explore other possibilities aside from completely eliminating her.

This is Shalltear they are talking about, Peroroncino's very own creation!

"I apologize Lady Tiamat. But as I recall, Ainz-sama is the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown. Therefore this will be decided solely by—"

"Albedo!" Ainz censured the Overseer of Nazarick. "That's enough. You are out of line."

Realizing her blunder, Albedo kneeled down. "Forgive this foolish servant for her error, Ainz-sama! I sincerely apologize."

"It is not me who you should be apologizing to."

"I...I understand. My sincerest apologies Lady Tiamat, I have spoken out of line."

"No. Stand up Albedo," Tiamat ordered the Overseer who immediately complied. "You're right. In Ainz Ooal Gown, I am nothing compared to Ainz."

"Stop it!" Ainz hissed at the Dragoness and sighed. "What is up with you two?"

Tiamat immediately changed the topic, "I'm going to look for Shalltear."

"Don't be rash," Ainz reprimanded her, his red orbs flaring. "Enemies might still be lurking nearby."

"I'm just going to look for her through the 『Mirror of Remote Viewing』, if you two come to a decision, then please tell me immediately," she stepped down from the side of the throne.

Mockingly, she bowed down towards Ainz, just like the Floor Guardians did. "Well then, I'll be going, Ainz-_sama_…"

"Tiamat, you—!"

But before Ainz could say more she disappeared through『Gate』.

（◞‸◟）

She teleported to her room, and as soon as she made sure that no one was around, tears uncontrollably streamed from her amethyst eyes.

She covered her face in her hands.

'_Why...why, Albedo?_' was the only thought that ran through her mind.

It hurt.

The instance she had heard the news, she felt nothing. The reality was too shocking to be true.

Then her heart turned into lead and slowly sank inside of her. Like a rock in the furthest depths of the ocean descending into the deep cold bottom, far from reach.

For Tiamat it was as if life had slapped her hard in the face.

She couldn't respond. There was no point in any attempt to overturn the situation. It had happened, and she was helpless.

Her eyes were sore from holding back the tears that were accumulating behind them.

A voice whispered in her head, '_You knew this would happen, didn't you?_'

A voice whispered in the darkness, '_You should be prepared for this...shouldn't you?_'

But she knew the answer.

She never had the courage to prepare herself for the worst. She was foolish enough to convince herself that the worst couldn't happen.

Murphy's Law. The worst case scenario had jumped out of its hiding place to shatter her naive notions and laugh at her despair as she trembled vulnerably in grief.

This was it. This was the day.

Her dreams, her hopes were sucked away like a poor piece of paper down a drain. Mercilessly ripped apart by the uncaring currents of the universe.

It really hurt. So badly. And there was nothing she could do.

She thought about both of the worlds she had lived in so far. Both were cruel, sadistic realms. The daily suffering and injustice she experienced on Earth and now, even in this reality, her family was being stripped away from her.

'_What a hellish world…_'

Even when she was granted a new beginning, the moment she began to live a happy life with the people she considered family, her hopes were pulled out from under her feet. She was too weak then, and she was too weak even now.

How do people even go about living their lives? How do they muster the motivation to keep slogging through everything like a sewer rat? How do they feel excited about living in such a grey world?

But that was the way it was, and complaining and crying could never change that.

However, there was a solution...a solution that she had prepared long ago.

It was time for her to make _lemon chewies_.

（◞‸◟）

As usual, Yuri accompanied her in the kitchen. Lunch time had passed half an hour ago, so there was no one in both the kitchen and the cafeteria. She was all alone with Yuri.

Yuri was supposed to be helping Lady Tiamat, however this time, Lady Tiamat insisted that she has to make this dessert by herself.

Yuri watched as the Dragoness cream together the sugar and coconut oil until fluffy, mixing lemon juice and zest, followed by honey. In a separate bowl, Tiamat whisk together flour, salt and baking powder. Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed sugar mixture and mix until smooth.

She watched the Supreme One rolls the dough into small, uniform balls and roll them in granulated sugar before placing them onto the baking pan and flattened it slightly. After that she immediately baked the dough for ten to twelve minutes, until set and lightly browned.

As the light colored cookie was done, the smell of lemon and honey wafted through the entire kitchen.

However, Yuri noticed something wrong.

Usually Lady Tiamat cooked for large groups of people, but this time it seemed that she only baked about a dozen cookies.

Tiamat looked at her status screen.

『Congratulations,『Lemon Chewies』 have been added to your Recipes!』

With sad eyes, she dismissed the screen and casted『Create Lesser Item』, one of the few utility spells she had, to create a small woven basket. When the chewies cooled down, she lined the basket with a small napkin and neatly stacked the cookies into the basket.

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, Tiamat finally called out to Yuri.

"Yuri…"

Immediately, as if she was expecting it, Yuri bowed down towards the Dragoness, "Yes, My Lady?"

"Please deliver this to Albedo. Stay and ask her to take a bite. If she does, then report back to me immediately. If she doesn't, then you and your sisters can eat the cookies."

"Yes, My Lady," Yuri stood up, and was about to leave to look for Albedo. "For future reference, what is the name of this cookie you made, My Lady?"

Although Yuri saw the corners of Tiamt's lips turn upwards into her usual smile, her eyes seemed strained and bitter, "These are called lemon chewies, Yuri. please tell Albedo that as well."

"It will be as you desire."

（◞‸◟）

The Dragoness teleported herself to the Sixth Floor Arena. There, she was immediately swamped by Aura and Mare who had been waiting for her at the entrance.

Mare was the first who noticed her arrival, and saw that the Supreme One's eyes were puffed and red, as if she had been crying.

However, Mare stayed quiet.

"My Lady!" Aura greeted Tiamat, "That was quick, how did it go?"

Tiamat looked down at the dark elf twins whose eyebrows were furrowed in worry. She shook her head internally. Right now, she had to compose herself and relieve the concern of the children in front of her.

'_Remember, children are sensitive to fear. Therefore, you must be strong for their sake._' she repeated the phrase over and over inside her head. She had to keep calm and act carefully.

Tiamat put a smile on her face, her regular smile, '_It has to be convincing…_' she patted the twins on the head.

"It's alright now Mare, Shalltear will be home soon," she assured the twins.

"W-What did Ainz-sama decide, My Lady?" Mare asked.

"Well, right now we have to locate where Shalltear is first. Then we'll go from there."

Seeing that the twins' eyes were still filled with doubt, she knelt down and hugged both of them tightly, rubbing soothing circles on their back. "Hey, it's alright. Trust me, everything will be fine," she smiled and gave each twin a peck on the cheek before she stood up to approach one of her baby dragons.

It seemed that Pentakrisis was resting somewhere on the floor. Well, no matter, this time it was not Pentakrisis she needed.

Tiamat walked to the baby dragons who were all huddled together, sharing their warmth in the corner of the Arena. Her gentle patting make one open his eyes, and as soon as it gave a happy screech when he saw Tiamat, the rest were wide awake as well.

She smiled and gave them a hug while landed nuzzled and licked all over her face.

Their grunts and chuffs held an obvious meaning to her; they missed her, and she missed them too.

Once they had their fair share of cuddling, Tiamat ordered one of her baby dragons, the fastest one, to fly over the area where Shalltear was last seen while Tiamat was looking at the view from both the baby dragon's eyes and the 『Mirror of Remote Viewing』.

She used an 『Invisibility』 scroll on the baby dragon before it left through a『Gate』towards the starry sky of the arena before disappearing completely.

"Come with me," she said to Aura and Mare, who dutifully complied.

She opened a『Gate』that transported them into her room.

As the twins looked around the room with starry eyes, awed that they were in a Supreme Being's living quarters, Tiamat gently guided them to a plush red sofa.

"『Shared Summon Sight』," Tiamat pulled out her 『Mirror of Remote Viewing』and linked it to the baby dragon she had sent out.

"Aura, Mare. Come here please"

The three watched as the dragonling flew around the forest, passing by countless trees and rivers.

Tiamat mentally asked the dragonling to circle around its surrounding area and to be on the lookout for Shalltear. She carefully watched his peripheral vision just in case he missed anything, while Aura and Mare observed through the mirror.

After almost an hour of circling around the area, her baby dragon had actually found Shalltear from the corner of its eyes.

"Aura, Mare, please look around Shalltear's surroundings. If there's someone lurking nearby, please tell me immediately."

All she could see were trees and more trees; there was no one hiding in plain sight at the very least.

She asked her baby dragon to hover above Shalltear, and anger immediately blazed in her as she saw the state she was in.

Shalltear was dressed in her suit of red-colored full plate armor which looked like it had been drenched in blood. She wore a swan shaped helmet which left only the face exposed. Avian feathers sprouted from either side of the helmet.

She held a huge, strange looking lance in one hand, resembling a pipette one might use in a science class. The Spuit Lance.

Shalltear Bloodfallen was ready for battle.

Immediately she stood up from her sofa and as she was about to activate『Gate』, a female voice echoed through her mind.

[Please forgive the disturbance, Lady Tiamat,] it was Narberal's voice.

She was annoyed at Narberal untimely interruption

[What is it Narberal? I'm—]

_I'm busy_, is what she wanted to say, but she cut herself off halfway.

A faint sense of regret came over her as soon as she raised her voice against Narberal. Narberal didn't do anything wrong.

[No, it's fine. What is it, Nabe-chan?]

[Yes. Someone from the Adventurers Guild is looking for you My Lady.]

[What? Why?] even though she had finished her two Adamantine ranked quests, she hadn't submitted them to the guild, so there was no way the guild was calling her about that.

[I do not know in detail, however I've heard that the Guild Master is looking for you. It has something to do with a certain Vampire.]

Tiamat opened her eyes in shock and disbelief, _'They found out?'_ The incident had only happened last night.

[Did they mention anything about the Vampire's appearance? Her hair, her eyes, her dress?]

[No, they didn't My Lady. A runner is currently being dispatched by the Adventurers Guild to look for you. They had hoped that this runner would find you in the Forest of Tob since they said you were completing Adamantine ranked quests inside the forest.]

Tiamat closed her eyes, mulling over the situation.

Shalltear should be a top priority right now. But she also had to stop the Guild in the case they were going to investigate Shalltear.

Finally, she came to a conclusion.

[Thank you Nabe-chan,] and with that she ended the message.

"Aura, Mare," they immediately turned their heads to look at her, "I have to go for a bit, please watch Shalltear for me. Mare, please inform Ainz and Albedo that we've found Shalltear's location, and Aura, please direct the Youngling back towards the Sixth Floor Arena."

The two could only look on helplessly when the Dragoness exited through 『Gate』as they glanced back at Shalltear's still form.

（◞‸◟）

"Hannah-sama, we've been expecting you," the receptionist called out to her as soon as she entered the guild hall.

"Yes, I found the runner looking for me inside the forest. Is there something Pluton-san needs?" she immediately replied.

After she had received Narberal's 『Message』, she activated her 『Scale of Ragnarok』and teleported into the Forest of Tob. She had sent a 『Message』 to Yuri in advance that she would be returning to her Adventurer persona to stop the guild from investigating Shalltear, and to pass the message along to Albedo and Ainz.

The last thing she heard from Yuri was that they were finishing up their business with Nigredo on the Fifth Floor.

"Yes, please follow me…" the receptionist led the way to one of the meeting rooms.

She followed the receptionist and the receptionist opened the door for her.

Behind the door was a well lit room, with a long table that seated eight people. Her eyes immediately landed on the three Mythril Adventurers that she had met the other day in Pluton's office, in addition to one lone man on the other side of the table who was wearing black full-plate armor.

However, this time there was a fat man standing beside Pluton Ainzach. His belly was rounded and flabby and his chins were overflowing with blubber. The excess of fat made him look like a bulldog.

The man was half bald, and his scalp blinded all who looked at it.

"Is this the fabled Silver Priestess?" his voice was heavy, drowned as it was by fat, and everytime he spoke he took a deep breath that sounded more like a pig's snort.

"Yes," Pluton Ainzach answered the fat man, "It is nice meeting you again, Hannah-sama."

"Guild Master," she bowed in greeting to Pluton and the Mythril Adventurers. "Moknach-san, Bellote-san, Igvarge-san."

"Hannah-sama, glad we could meet again," Bellote replied politely. Moknach nodded at her greeting while Igvarge clicked his tongue and turned his head toward Pluton so he didn't have to look at her, or rather, the shining Adamantine plate that rested on her hips.

Moknach smiled at the sight of the Priestess, he had heard that the Priestess was alive and well, and had returned back to Adventuring just one week after the Pandemonium. He also looked at her new Adamantine metal plate and nodded in satisfaction. He agreed that Hannah Annafelowz was one of those who definitely were deserving of the rank.

"Please take a seat Hannah-sama," Bellote offered the empty chair beside the dark armored Adventurer. "Oh, this is Momon-san, a new Mythril adventurer."

As soon as she heard the name, her breath hitched in her throat and two thoughts immediately popped up in her mind.

One was, _'Awkward…' _considering the way she had left the throne room just a few hours ago, and the second was _'His name is Momon, pfft~!'_

Truly, Ainz was not creative when it came to naming things.

"Momon-san, pleased to meet you. My name is Hannah Annafelowz, an Adamantine Adventurer," she grinned at him. Hannah Annafelowz had never met Momon before, so this was their personas' first time meeting with each other.

"Ah yes, you are the injured adventurer from one week ago," Ainz caught on to her act.

"I heard you gave me your health potion. Thank you very much for helping me."

"Hm, that was nothing. Glad to see you alive and well, Hannah-san."

She sat down on the chair provided for her. "And this is…?" she waved her arm at the person who stood beside Pluton.

"This is the Mayor of E-Rantel, Panasolei Gruuze De Rittenmeier-san."

Tiamat nodded, and Panasoleoi waved slightly in response.

"And this is the leader of the E-Rantel Magician's Guild, Theo Rakesheer," a skinny man who looked as frail as a bamboo pole and seemed at least somewhat anorexic nodded at Tiamat.

"It's nice to finally put a face on the Silver Priestess. As expected of the rumors, you are truly a beauty," the Mayor nodded, appreciating the woman in front of him and Tiamat inwardly sighed; she didn't want to deal with this right now.

She forced a strained smile in reply.

Thankfully, Ainz sensed her discomfort, and changed the topic, "So why is an Adamantine Adventurer here?"

"Before that, shouldn't we show some basic courtesy and remove our helmets?" Igvarge cut in with mocking words. At this, Tiamat became even more annoyed; not a single word that came out from that man's mouth had been good. It was always sneers and disdain.

"It's fine. This time, he has a point. I have been somewhat rude," Ainz replied quickly. "Since I came from another country, I wore my helmet to avoid drawing trouble. Please forgive my lack of manners."

"Tch, so you're a foreigner."

Her stiff smile fell. She was stuck here in this room with the molesting Guild Master, corrupt Mayor, anorexic magician, an annoying Adventurer, and kill-joy Ainz. If they continued this facade, the lower ranked adventurers would get closer and closer to Shalltear's location.

"Shut up, Igva—" but Theodore was cut off by the soft voice of the Silver Priestess.

Her amethyst eyes were cold with disgust as she glared at Igvarge.

"Igvarge-san," she smiled at him sweetly. "If you keep on interrupting the discussion, I'll ask Pentakrisis to eat you. So, stop wasting our time."

All the men in the room flinched at her words, however, this enraged Igvarge even more.

"Well, it's because a certain someone was late that we haven't heard about anything until now."

"Then, please forgive me for being late," Tiamat lowered her head in apology.

Faced with Igvarge's hostility and constant jabs, her sincere apology made her seem much more cordial in comparison. Igvarge scoffed angrily as his scowl deepened, he was well aware that the general opinion of him had fallen even further.

However, most people in the room agreed that Igvarge was disrupting the whole meeting.

Siding with Tiamat to get on her good side, Pluton spoke up, eyes filled with rage. "One more interruption and you can get your ass out of here."

Igvarge inclined his head slightly in apology.

Pluton cleared his throat. "Let's skip the idle chatter and continue. To summarize, about two nights ago, some adventurers who were patrolling the outskirts of E-Rantel encountered a vampire. Five of them were killed by the Vampire. I have gathered all of you here because of that incident."

As both Ainz and Tiamat listened to the description of the Vampire, they both knew that it was Shalltear that they were discussing.

"Then, do any of you have any questions?"

"When you say the outskirts, where exactly do you mean by that?" Moknach raised his hand.

"It's a place about three hours away from the north gate. There is a large clearing there, and the incident took place within the forest."

"What rank were those adventurers?"

"They were iron plates."

The discussion continued while the two of them listened intently.

Ainz was already thinking about altering the memory of the adventurers who saw Shalltear, but Tiamat kept on listening to the conversation.

"Vampires can turn their prey into servants by sucking their blood. It will be a catastrophe if the monster makes it into E-Rantel."

"Could this be related to the communal cemetery case?"

"Oh, the one that Momon-san resolved last night. Was there anything on the bodies of the masterminds that would tie the two events together?"

"From their belongings, we learned the enemy was from Zuranon."

Immediately, the faces of the three Mythril adventurers turned grim.

"That undead-controlling secret society? I guess they really are linked with that vampire."

"So their aim was to trigger incidents within and outside the city to split our forces? Or are both of them decoys, and the real plan about to begin…this is terrible."

"We know that there is a cave near the area the vampire was spotted. We'll send a scouting party there first."

'_No!'_ she screamed inwardly as the discussion was starting to form the most logical solution.

The worst case scenario would be if Shalltear's appearance became public knowledge. It meant she would have to face two sides, the Adventurers, as well as Nazarick.

She desperately tried to think of a way to guide the situation in another direction.

However, Ainz was _always_ one step faster than her.

"You are mistaken," the silent black armored man finally voiced his opinion. "That vampire has nothing to do with Zuranon."

"Why is that Momon-san? Do you know something about this?"

"I know the name of that Vampire because I have been hunting that creature for a long time."

"What?!" was the reply from all the men inside the room as the air shuddered in shock.

"It's an extremely powerful vampire. In truth, the reason I became an Adventurers was to collect information about it."

"Now that you talk about it…" Pluton said, looking at Tiamat, "Hannah-sama had the same reasoning when she first started as an Adventure, is this perhaps the same vampire, Hannah-sama?"

The news was shocking to the people in the room, they had never thought that two of the strongest people would come into their town for the same reason.

Tiamat's brain spun into overdrive.

"Yes," she answered, perhaps they could turn the situation around."The features described are exactly the same as the vampire I have been looking for."

Like a fish, they took the bait.

"Momon-san, do you know the name of this vampire?" she asked Ainz.

Ainz suddenly stopped to stare at her, and people in the room waited in bated breath as he blurted out a name.

"Honyopenyoto…"

"Eh?"

That idiotic-sounding reply had not come from one mouth; just about everyone had exclaimed the same way.

"...Her name is Honyopenyoko."

Tiamat stayed quiet as she looked down, her shoulders trembling, and as soon as Pluton saw the Silver Priestess he understood. The Silver Priestess must have been remembering the loss of her family when she heard that vampire's name.

Not just him, but the rest of the people inside the room aside from Ainz thought the same thing as Pluton.

Her hair was down, covering her face. She raised her hand to her mouth to muffle her cries. But her whimpers and trembling shoulders indicated the great burden this person carried.

They could empathize with her.

The harsh reality of losing your loved ones.

For that to have happened to someone so young, so _innocent_, broke their hearts.

That was why they waited until the Priestess regained her composure.

In truth, Tiamat was trying her best to hold back her laughter. She let her hair cascade down, covering her face with the palms of her hands, but she couldn't restrain the small shudders of laughter that escaped her body.

'_BUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HONYOPENYOKO, What kind of name is that Momo-chan!_'

She restrained her laughter so hard that tears started escaping from her eyes.

The people inside the meeting room waited for the Silver Priestess.

Her muffled voice sounded like she was holding back her tears. Pluton could understand, it must be hard for her…

After a while, she took a deep breath, raised her face and wiped the tears away from the corners of her eyes.

"I see…her name is Honyopenyoko."

As soon as she said that out loud, she received a 『Message』 from Ainz.

[What? It's a good name, players from YGGDRASIL would know that it was a player who created that name.]

[Sorry, I couldn't resist] with that, she ended the『Message』.

"Is, is that so? That Honyo...ah, forget it! Since we know that female vampire's name, it's about time you told us of your true identity, no? Seeing that the _tramp _looks like she was from the same country as you are, which country are you—"

Ainz cut him off. He dearly wanted to crush Igvarge into paste for calling his dearest friend such a degrading word. However, he had to redirect the topic first. Afterall, this man would regret it later anyways.

"I apologize, but I cannot tell you right now. Currently I am on a top-secret mission. If you find out, I will have no choice but to leave this land, and then you will have to deal with the vampire yourself. I do not wish for this to become an international incident. You do understand, don't you, Mayor?"

The Mayor nodded slowly.

Finally a wave of realization came over Tiamat as she figured out what Ainz was planning. First and foremost, they have to get rid of the investigating team.

She said confidently, determination brimming in her voice. "I will handle the reconnaissance. Afterall, this is why you have summoned me, right?"

The air filled with a pressure that reminded them of the rumbling of a dragon.

"Then, ah, the other teams will—"

"I will be joining the Silver Priestess in slaying the vampire. Other teams will not needed, they will only slow us down," thus spoke the Warrior of Darkness.

That was smart of Ainz to do. He waved off all opposition to the plan made by the rest of the people in the room. This was their way of basically saying: this is our problem, so don't meddle.

They couldn't believe this extraordinary sight

A tactless declaration made by newly rising adventurers. One who just rose to Adamantine and one to Mythril.

They could sense that the attitudes of these two people were not born of recklessness, narcissism, or pride, but had been coldly, carefully calculated. At the same time, it spoke of their strength to be able to make such a statement.

This could be a new hero team in the making.

The rest choked their words back and took several deep breaths, even the Mayor opened up his collar, his sweat flowing freely.

"Then," Pluton said in a small voice, as if whispering. "What about the payment?"

"Since the Priestess and I come from different ranks, her payment and mine will obviously differ. However, for me, I would like an Orichalcum rank at the very least. That would make it more convenient for me, because it is tiresome to have to keep proving my strength."

Everyone present gaped their mouth at his audacious demands.

Then, the sole woman in the room delivered the final blow, ending the discussion entirely.

"Then my payment would be to abolish this quest," she slid a piece of parchment across the wooden table, an adamantine ranked quest parchment. "I searched far and wide but the Quagoas were not to be found. Therefore proving impossible for me to finish this quest."

A chair screeched, and all eyes went to the source of the sound, Igvarge.

"That's not payment! If you can't finish the quest then just say so! Moreover, you—I can't convince myself to believe in your strength. Be-besides it's not clear if that Vampire is as strong as you say! I'm going with you!"

To the rest of the people in the room, it was clear that Igvarge was simply jealous of the two who rose faster through the ranks than him.

"Igvarge, that tone of yours—"

"It's fine," the Priestess cut off Pluton with a smile.

"With that being said," the Dark Warrior continued, "If you want to come along...you'll definitely die."

Instead of a warning, it sounded more like a premonition. Igavarge shuddered at the tone in which the dark warrior said those words. In fact, everyone present was chilled to the bone by his statement.

"I agree with Momon-san. If you don't mind then please come along." Tiamat shrugged, however, her reply was frosty and sharp.

"Of, of course!"

Igvarge was obviously bluffing, but he couldn't back down or run away.

"It's all well and good to be confident. Moreover, the Silver Priestess will also be going on this quest. If she goes, that means her dragon will also go with her. In that case, we'll be leaving everything to both of you."

Ainz and Tiamat nodded confidently at Pluton's humble submission.

"We should move out as soon as possible. Vampires suffer a penalty of slowed movement under daylight," The Priestess said as she looked at the Dark Warrior.

"Yes, let's meet at E-Rantel's main gate in an hour."

Igvarge protested at their sudden agreement. "One hour is too soon! There's still a long time before sunset."

Ignoring Igvarge, Tiamat gracefully rose from her chair, "Then let's go prepare. Should we plan together, Momon-san?"

Ainz nodded and with scraped the chair across the floor as he stood up and followed the Priestess outside the room.

（◞‸◟）

Releasing herself from her disguise, Tiamat's red hair flowed from her head and waved in the wind.

She slowly walked to a large clearing where a person in a suit of crimson plate armor stood. The person was superbly beautiful, but the stench of rotting blood that clung to her ruined her whole aesthetic.

"Shalltear…" Tiamat said softly to her.

There was no response.

Tiamat looked at the vampire again. Her eyes were open, however they were not gleaming with life.

"Shalltear, can you hear me?" Tiamat's voice started to sound hoarse and small.

The usual Shalltear would have immediately responded to her, twirling her purple parasol while spouting indecent things with her pretty mouth.

But this one said nothing, responded to nothing.

"Shalltear, your boobs are pathetically small. You wanna know why? That's because the designer made your boobs small and Peroroncino let him because he was too lazy to go back to the designer."

Tiamat knew if anyone were to diss her small boobs, Shalltear would screech angrily, as she usually did towards Albedo and Aura.

But there was no response.

"Shalltear, I'll sleep with you," and edge of desperation crept into her voice.

The usual Shalltear would most definitely start huffing out steam as soon as she heard Tiamat's proposal, saying things like how her underwear was wet and how she couldn't wait for it to happen, or all the dirty things she wanted to do to Tiamat

But this Shalltear didn't say anything.

Her eyes remained impassive as she looked down on the ground with those haunting eyes, just like a doll.

She hated this Shalltear.

Tiamat wanted the real Shalltear to return.

"Hey, Shalltear…" Tiamat stopped herself in front of the Valkyrie, "I'll bake you a blood cookie, I don't care if it'll destroy the oven, so let's go back to Nazarick, ne?"

No response.

Tiamat brought her hand up to touch the impassive person in front of her.

"Tiamat!" Ainz's harsh words stopped Tiamat in her tracks as her hand hovered above Shalltear's head. Immediately, the Overlord grabbed her hand, enveloping it in his own skeletal one and dragged her away from Shalltear. "Don't touch her, you idiot!"

She pulled her hand away and in panic she cradled her hands to her chest. "Sorry…" Ainz had never used that tone with her, and her eyes moved downwards to the ground in shame.

"Looking at the way she ignored all of Tiamat's sentences, I am certain that Shalltear is indeed under mind control."

Albedo who stood behind Ainz loyally replied. "Is this due to the reason you mentioned in the Throne Room, Ainz-sama?"

"Some mysterious person attempted to control Shalltear's mind, but something happened before that person could issue any orders. Perhaps they were struck down just as they made their move. But I know one thing for sure. She will probably defend herself against anyone who gets too close or who attacks her. Most evil-aligned NPCs will do just that, so don't get too close."

Ainz looked down at Tiamat, "Do you understand, Tia?"

The Dragoness nodded.

"If that's the case then we cannot bring her back to Nazarick…" she mulled.

"That is accurate. It would have been fine if we were certain that Shalltear's controller is dead. But if that person is alive, then it will be dangerous to wait here," Ainz replied. "That's why I will be using this."

On his forefinger, a plain ring rested; it glowed with a silver light and displayed three meteors on its face. Even if the ring looked plain and undecorated, Tiamat knew this was the mightiest ring Ainz had in his possession.

That was why when he said he would use the ring on Shalltear, she tried to snatch the ring away. Greed bubbled within her when she saw how Ainz was gambling with such a powerful item.

She immediately recognized it to be a side effect of having turned into a dragon heteromorph, and was grateful when she felt the lust subside as she remembered how the lore for her God Beast racial class included the loss of materialistic attachments.

Even so, she still tried to stop Ainz from possibly wasting it before they fully understood the situation.

"Are you an idiot?" she jumped to reach Ainz's ring, but since his avatar was a lot taller than hers, he simply had to raise his arm high so that she couldn't reach it.

『Wish Upon A Star 』, a Super Tier Spell imbued within the ring to randomly generate an option for a wish. The ring itself only had three uses in it.

To obtain this ring, Ainz had spent most of his savings on gacha and only survived on Tiamat's bread for months.

Tiamat finally gave up when she saw his skeletal face appear more grim than usual. It seemed like he was gambling on a cash item, but she could understand. Shalltear was irreplaceable afterall.

But there was only one problem.

"What if it doesn't work?" she said, staring at Shalltear.

"Then," Ainz mulled over his decision, "Then there are two option: one it works, and the other, it doesn't. It's that simple."

"But you only get three uses out of the ring..."

"Shalltear is far more important than any cash item. Don't you worry about that…"

"Don't you wanna know what I think?" she looked at him through the corner of her eyes. Ainz was beside her, staring right at her.

"Then pray tell."

"What if," she halted, "What if it was an effect of a World Item."

World Item, the most powerful class of items in YGGDRASIL. Items that possessed massive power that could potentially threaten the game's balance, thus, earning them the term "Balance Breakers".

The scenarios that they feared the most. A result so bad that it brought lines of displeasure across their features.

"Remember that one time someone almost mind controlled me during a Guild Battle? Only to be stopped by Hygieia's Chalice?"

"I see what you mean, indeed we have faced _that_ World Item before," Ainz sighed and massaged his head as a headache started to form. "If that's the case, then I have to prepare for battle." Ainz finally looked away from his friend to look at Shalltear's form, battle strategies already forming in his head.

Tiamat's eyes flashed dangerously, "You can't."

"Are you doubting my ability?" his orbs flared with unearthly fire as he challenged her.

"No," Tiamat shook her head in disagreement. "It's not your ability."

"Then please rest assured, I will do everything in my power to bring Shalltear back."

As soon as those words were uttered from his mouth, unknown to Ainz, Tiamat's head moved towards where Albedo stood.

She noticed the fear in Albedo's eyes, and as soon as Albedo's eyes met with the Dragoness's, the Succubus nodded in understanding. Her lips were pulled taut, unable to form a smile.

Tiamat nodded in reply.

"Then...hear me, oh ring. I wish to dispel all effects on Shalltear!"

Tiamat saw a beautiful blue magic circle form on the ground. She opened her eyes wide, not expecting the different visual effects the ring provided in the New World.

However, as soon as Ainz said his wish, the magic circle cracked like a broken mirror and the shards raised upwards, defying gravity.

"What—What is this?!"

Tiamat realized that something had changed when she saw Ainz's agitated reaction.

"Oi, Ainz, is everything—"

However, she received no answer from Ainz as fear and anger broke through the emotional suppression that should have kept him calm.

"I should've realized that World Items exist in this world. It was a mistake on my part," Ainz clenched his fist in rage.

"Mine too, I should've at least checked…" she uttered sadly, feeling disappointed in herself for fooling around since they had arrived in the New World.

"Tch, damnit!" Ainz tried to calm himself down. "Albedo, recall all the Guardians from the outside world immediately. We must verify if they have been controlled like Shalltear. After that, we shall proceed to the Treasury."

Albedo bowed, "It will be as you will."

Ainz turned to look at Tiamat, "I need to make preparations for battle. Let's go back now."

When amethyst met blood red, Ainz should've noticed the sullen look in her eyes; eyes filled with ice and plots.

"Please go back first, I want to look at Shalltear one last time…" she looked away from his red orbs to stare at Shalltear.

"Umu, I understand. Please return to Nazarick as soon as you can. I'll meet you in the Throne Room."

Tiamat nodded and Ainz casted a『Gate』 to Nazarick. He entered the portal with haste, but before Albedo could follow, she called out to her.

"Albedo…"

"Yes, My Lady."

"Did you eat the lemon chewies?"

Instantly, every fiber of Albedo's being stiffened, and she stiffly nodded.

"I see…" Tiamat gave Albedo a sad smile.

And with that, Albedo stepped through the purple rift, leaving her all alone in a field with a bloody valkyrie.

* * *

_Omake_

* * *

Feoh Berkana—formerly the Royal capital of the Kingdom of Dwarves, built during the golden age of their civilization—was astounding to say the least.

With the Royal Palace standing tall at its center, he could still remember the magnificent view on top of the large Palace that overlooked the entirety of the Capital.

But that place was not for him.

It was the place where the Olasird'arc Haylilyal resided until a week ago, the King of the Frost Dragons and his wives.

Instead, he took the second largest building in the capital. The building had lots of room to work with and it contained many rooms that could be used as meeting halls and temporary vaults to store resources.

The former Merchant's Guild was now the residence of Pe Riyuro, Lord of the Quagoa clans.

Tufts of golden fur could be seen, almost sinking, into a large and soft cushion. His expression, however, was not one of disappointment or sadness, even after Yozu had told him everything he could after a week of investigation.

Riyuro only listened in silence.

"Right now a quest had been submitted to the _human_ adventurer's guild as we are speaking."

"I see," Riyuro nodded. "That is good, how long do we have to wait until the humans supposedly finish what I asked for?"

"To be honest, I have no idea. It could take days or even months."

Riyuro closed his eyes and thought. Days or months were good enough, as long as they were still alive.

He leaned back into the cushion, trying to figure out how the whole mess started.

A week ago, a group of young Quagoas were playing outside Feoh Berkana, but none of them returned home. Their parents expressed their concerns to him, however, it was impossible to investigate where the Quagoas had gone.

To him, this was a normal occurrence even he too could understand.

There was some sort of game running rampant amongst the young Quagoas. To test their bravery, they were being sent off to the human plains, most likely only to the edges of the Forest of Tobs, and bring back a full stick of leaves from the forest.

But it had already been a week and none of them had returned.

Not a single one of them.

He only took it seriously when Olasird'arc Haylilyal, his master, expressed the same concern.

A week ago, three of his younglings disappeared as well, but he couldn't track where they currently were.

Upon the order of his master, he took it upon himself to investigate outside Feoh Berkana. He couldn't let some measly humans handle the matter of his clan.

As soon as Yozu had left his chamber, he waited for a bit to make sure that he was alone, and then sneaked out of his house to look for the Quagoas.

He would do anything in his power to find those younglings.

He was chosen as their leader for a reason, and he promised to never disappoint any of them.

However, that promise was broken today.

When he arrived just before the entrance to Feoh Berkana, he raised his head at the slight smell of blood and char wafting through the air.

A tangy acidic smell, like something rotten, and something that smelled like burnt meat were mixed together in the air.

When he looked at the source of the noxious odor, he saw the missing Quagoas carrying their dead friend in their hands.

The younglings were brought back dead by their friends in such a large amount, the once living, bustling young children was now just lumps of flesh.

Not only him, but the rest of the Quagoas who smelled the rot came towards the entrance, and soon cries of sorrow could echoed throughout the cavern.

Those who were still alive bore shifting colors in their eyes, like melted gold, as if they were hypnotized, but as soon as they entered Feoh Berkana, the golden shade dissipated from their eyes.

The screams of terror from the younglings was heartbreaking when they looked down to see their dead friends, dismangled, rotten, and burned.

The smell lingered in the air, while rats and maggots ate away at the discolored sea green color of the dead meat.

The air tasted like Death itself.

He tried to block the smell with his hands, to no avail, while the parents of the young Quagoas ran towards the children who still lived, cradling them in their arms as the youngling cried in despair from the loss of their friends.

Their screams blended with those of the young ones as the rest mourned in silence.

Riyuro could only watch.

That day was the day where most of the young generation had vanished. Even until today, most of them hadn't relinquished their trauma, and when the younglings who were alive were asked about it, they could only quiver in place while saying:

"Red Demon."

This broke Riyuro's heart, and as their leader, he created a new law stating that no one other than the hunters were allowed to leave Feoh Berkana.

What he didn't know was that in the future, he would suffer more anguish and despair than even this incident.

* * *

**Hackslashbash: No, this is not going to be some dumb Nazarick-bash fic, just in case you were thinking about that. Tia loves Nazarick lots! Btw we have a discord now! If you join you'll have more input on the direction of the story. Here is the link:**

'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (colon) (slash) (slash) **d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range **r**efreshing **d**rink . **gg **(slash) JUejk8J

**A/N: I hope with this story we can be more emphatic about rape victims, for both women **_**and**_** men. It's horrible that shit like this happens in real life. It can be extremely difficult for survivors to come forward and share their story. They may feel ashamed, concerned that they won't be believed, or worried that they'll be blamed. Please listen to their story and support them.**


	15. CHAPTER 15: Dragon Slayer

**Chapter 15: Dragon Slayer**

* * *

**Two days ago**

"Who's more important? Me? Or Ainz?" She asked the Overseer of Nazarick.

Albedo's eyes opened wide at the Goddess's question. Never in her life was she expecting Lady Tiamat to force her to answer such a difficult question.

The Succubus remained silent as she thought through all the responses she could possibly give to the Supreme Being.

In the end, she decided on an answer that she thought was best.

"My Lady, I think that both of you are equally important," she bowed her head low, "Without Lord Ainz, there is no way Nazarick would be able to function. As you know, ever since the rest of the Supreme Beings stopped coming to Nazarick, you and Ainz-sama are the only one keeping the place afloat."

Albedo raised her head to look into Tiamat's eyes. She wanted to see her intentions.

But what she saw was a distant, endless void.

She had never seen Lady Tiamat like that before.

She was always kind and warm, to the point that many of the Floor Guardians began calling her the matriarch of Nazarick, including herself.

Her motherly and gentle nature was their sanctuary at the same time that Ainz-sama was their pillar. She had never expected anything from them in return, and she always provided for them with a smile.

That was why Albedo never expected that Lady Tiamat would reply to her question in such a way.

"You're wrong, Albedo," Her voice was stern, like a mother correcting her children when they did something wrong. "Ainz is much more important than me."

Albedo looked up at Tiamat, but she was looking at the throne with sorrowful eyes.

"Could you imagine Nazarick without Ainz? The place would be a mess, and in the end Nazarick would fall into ruin."

The Dragoness looked towards the flag insignias in the Throne Room and Albedo followed her line of sight. She realized that Lady Tiamat was not looking at one specific flag, but at all of them.

"You see," she continued, "In Ainz Ooal Gown, I am nothing."

Immediately, the Succubus rebutted the Dragoness's statement.

"That is not true My Lady. We have said this before, but just because Lord Ainz's strength and yours differ, doesn't mean you're any less important. You are one of the two who did not abandon us when we needed you!"

"Then, do you hate them?"

"What?" Albedo was caught off guard by her sudden question, reflexively replying without thinking.

"Do you hate them?" Tiamat repeated herself, her voice softer, much more mellow as she looked at the flags one by one. "If I were to leave you today, would you hate me too?"

Tiamat finally looked at Albedo and gave her a sad smile.

It was at this moment that Albedo realized the heaviness that the Dragoness carried with her. All this time, she was always supporting Ainz-sama, supporting _them_, the Floor Guardians, yet despite all of that, she still didn't believe in herself.

"No, I wouldn't," Albedo answered with certainty.

Tiamat looked at Albedo in shock, clearly not expecting that response to come out from her mouth.

"Why?" she asked in a small voice.

"Lady Tiamat, you are so much stronger than you imagine. Some people may call you weak or insignificant, but they don't know what they're talking about. If you are so hellbent on leaving Nazarick you would have done so, but you didn't. You kept supporting Ainz-sama even though you didn't have to."

"You put too much faith in me, Albedo…"

"No. I know this for certain My Lady. If you were to leave Nazarick, then it will be different from the other Supreme Beings. I am sure you have a good enough reason,_ and_ that I know you're too fond of Aura and Mare to leave them alone."

Tiamat smiled at Albedo, her true smile,"Ah, that's right. Bukubukuchagama's twins are too adorable."

"Forgive my insolence My Lady, but I will answer your question honestly."

Tiamat nodded, and Albedo continued.

"To be fair, the rest of the Supreme Beings who didn't stay may rot in hell for all I care."

Tiamat's lips quirked up bitterly. She never thought that the perfect Albedo would think that way about the rest of the members of Nazarick, but it wasn't too surprising to be honest.

"I know they're the Supreme Beings who created Nazarick, but they abandoned us. I always wondered what we did that was so wrong that they decided to leave Nazarick entirely."

The reality hit Tiamat like a cricket bat in the gut and her heart was flung across the entire room away from her body. The reaction was faster than even her brain's accelerated processes as it tried to register the emotional feeling that she was sure all the Floor Guardians had felt all this time.

_Abandonment._

Tiamat softly replied to Albedo, "They didn't leave entirely, Albedo, they just…"

But the words stuck in her throat. How was she supposed to explain to Albedo that she mattered, how could she, a simple human, take away such a deep intense sadness? How could she explain to Albedo that her friends had things that were so much more important than Nazarick?

How could she explain this without hurting Albedo…?

It would have been so much easier for her to cry or sob, because Tiamat was used to dealing with that.

But the Floor Guardians were not children at the orphanage back on Earth. They were not in game characters or some unimportant NPCs.

They are now living beings who breathed, loved, hated, _lived_.

Perhaps deep inside, Tiamat knew this, which was why she was trying to make them as happy as she possibly could.

However, throughout the waves of sad realization, there was a silver lining.

In the end, the Floor Guardians and Ainz were not so different after all.

She knew that they were different creatures, but in their heart, they are thinking about the same things. They felt the same sadness and the same grief.

Tiamat reached out to give Albedo a hug.

The force of the Supreme Being slamming her body into hers had thrown her slightly off balance, but she managed to catch herself and Lady Tiamat. Albedo didn't realize how tight she was holding the Goddess as she wrapped her arms around her figure.

Tiamat rested her arms around her waist as she pulled Albedo's head to rest on her shoulder.

"My Lady…?"

Albedo felt the Supreme Being giving her a small squeeze.

"I'm sorry Albedo. I tried my best to keep them together, but…" she decided not to go on that path, "It was hard, wasn't it?" she said to Albedo, her voice as soft as possible.

"Serving the Supreme Beings such as yourself and Lord Ainz is a pleasure, My La—"

"You said you would answer all my questions honestly."

Albedo eyes watered, remembering what she promised, and slowly, she buried her head into Lady Tiamat's shoulder as she slowly nodded.

"I understand, it really hurts, doesn't it?"

Albedo slowly reached for the back of Tiamat's dress and clenched it tightly, just like a child clutching to their mother, and nodded again.

The warmth the Dragoness exuded was like a warm summer breeze in the depths of an eternal winter. When she hugged her, it felt like she was loved and valued. She knew that Lady Tiamat cared about her and her arms would keep her protected.

"Ainz feels the same way too, you know."

Albedo raised her head and looked up to Tiamat who was slightly taller than her, disbelief was clearly featured on her face. She couldn't believe that Ainz-sama felt the same way as she did.

"R-Really?"

"Yes," Tiamat gently tucked Albedo's black locks behind her ear. "It's alright to be angry, Albedo."

Albedo released herself from Tiamat's hold.

"Why should I be mad My Lady? It's not like I was just created by Lord Tabula. It's not like I'm sitting up all night thinking about why they left. Nazarick doesn't need those who leave it behind. Isn't that right My Lady?"

A strange feeling bubbled inside Albedo. She let the feeling consume her, as it burst like a broken dam.

"I got through my first raid without Lord Tabula, I learned how to manage Nazarick without Lord Tabula, I learned how to sew, I learned how to fight without him," her voice steadily grew louder and louder, "I have a wonderful job in Nazarick, the greatest honor that could ever be achieved as the Overseer of Nazarick!"

Finishing her rant, Albedo panted and Tiamat waited for her to regain her composure.

"I didn't need him then, and I don't need him now."

"Albedo…"

"No, My Lady, to answer your first question, _no_, I don't hate them. As I said, I don't care about those who abandoned Nazarick in the first place. In fact, I'll be even better than what _he_ had designed me to do. I'm sure I don't need him for that as well, because there is _nothing_ he could ever teach me about anything!"

Albedo screamed the last word, and Tiamat stayed quiet.

Unexpectedly, tears started streaming down Albedo's face.

"So how come he didn't want me, My Lady?"

Tiamat immediately rushed towards Albedo to hug her as Albedo broke down sobbing.

"Am I not good enough?" Albedo asked softly, and Tiamat knew, without her keen sense of hearing, she wouldn't have been able to hear what Albedo just said.

The feeling of fear and self pity exuded in waves from Albedo and shame washed over Tiamat as she didn't realize what Albedo had been feeling until just a few moments ago.

All she could do for Albedo was to lend her shoulder and be strong for her sake.

"Albedo…" Tiamat began, "You _are _good enough. You _are _wanted. No matter what happens, Ainz and I will always be here for you. We're never going to abandon you, got it?" Tiamat gave a watery smile.

"My Lady…" Albedo wiped the tears from her face, "Thank you…"

"I'm not going to leave, Albedo, but right now, there's something I have to do," Tiamat said looking Albedo straight in the eye. "I have something I need to tell you…"

( ﹏⁰)｡

Ainz brought Albedo inside the innermost depths of the treasury, where all his friends' items dwelled.

He sported a full set of divine class items and all sorts of cash items, while Shalltear only had a single divine class item, her Spuit Lance. Ainz knew he had a massive advantage in terms of equipment quality. However, what Albedo had left unsaid was why Ainz's chances of victory were slim.

Ainz was fully aware of that reason as well.

It was because Shalltear Bloodfallen was the nemesis of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Ainz was an undead magician that focused on necromancer-type classes.

In other words, his character had been built for entertainment.

Shalltear on the other hand, had been made with an optimized build. In addition, Shalltear's divine magic caster classes could use many spells which were very effective on the undead, and she was adept at melee combat.

These two reasons were bad enough, and on top of that, the necromantic spells Ainz favored did not work well on Shalltear.

Ainz could not use his specialty against Shalltear, and Shalltear had an advantage when fighting the undead.

In addition, Ainz typically did not equip his best items because he feared that they would be stolen away. When they clashed, Ainz's chances would be very low. Worse, he might not have a chance at all.

"So you're saying that the circumstances don't favor me?"

That might be the case, Ainz agreed. He should not be able to beat Shalltear.

"—There is nothing wrong with your thinking, but it is in error. After all, you only possess the knowledge that has been infused into you."

"Eh? What does that mean?"

"The most important thing is how much combat experience you have."

"I see. As you know, I can make full use of the strength the Supreme Beings have given me. So I believe that counts as being very experienced."

Ainz shook his head to reject Albedo's answer. He had learned a lot when fighting that Clementine woman.

"That's not right. Being able to wield power and being able to utilize experience are completely different things. Do you remember the large-scale invasion of Nazarick? Are you familiar with Shalltear's memories of fighting players?"

"I did not ask in detail, but she said she vaguely remembered being killed once."

"Besides that?"

Albedo shook her head to indicate that she did not.

"Typically, she and I were the ones who handled lone intruders while Tiamat supported us with her healer build and tanked most of the attacks. That being the case, I should be the one who goes, since I have the highest chance of winning."

Ainz smiled coldly. Naturally, his face did not move.

"When I was the guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown, my chances of victory in PVP combat were quite high… granted, I lost to people who had flawless builds, but how can I be defeated by someone who only relies on high stats? More importantly, I had a close friendship with Peroroncino. This is what they mean by _The battle's over before it's begun..._"

"I'm sorry Lord Ainz, I'm more inclined to disagree."

Ainz studied Albedo quietly, and then his jaw fell open. "Eh?"

"I have asked Aureole Omega to close all the entrances to Nazarick from this point forward. I have also blocked all the teleportation channels that will allow you to move out from Nazarick."

"What! Why?!"

"That is because," Albedo bowed her head down low. "I already made a promise with Lady Tiamat."

( ﹏⁰)｡

Using the『Mirror of Remote Viewing』, Tiamat checked her surroundings, making sure there was no one was around.

She opened『Gate』from the Sixth Floor one last time, allowing the ethereal 『Seraph Empyrean』 to cross over from the Arena to where she was standing.

"『Dragon Saintess Angel Summon: Seraph Empyrean』."

The sound of church bells rang for the second time in the New World, once again announcing the descent of a holy deity.

The sky split apart and at its center, a golden colonnade descended towards Tiamat. In its wake, the Seraph glided to the earth from the heavens, accompanied by an angelic choir.

Now she had two of the highest tier angels to fight against Shalltear. She looked at the Divine Class sealing artifact in her hand, something she had grabbed at the last minute, and tightened her grip on it.

She could only hope that it would be enough.

( ﹏⁰)｡

The last person to enter the room was Demiurge, who was shocked when he saw Ainz sitting down on the sofa. Demiurge's foul mood was clearly noted by the people in the room, but they knew that he would never act impolitely under any circumstances. Especially if a Supreme Beings was around.

"Well, is there an explanation for this?"

Demiurge narrowed his gemstone eyes as he intensely directed a question to Albedo who had the audacity to stand at Ainz-sama's right side.

From the 『Message』 he had received before coming into this room, he had an idea of what Lady Tiamat might have said to Albedo. However the question still plagued him.

"Why did you agree to such a foolish proposal?"

His tone was even, but that was simply a thin veil draped over the surface. Everyone could feel the barbs in his words.

Not even Ainz had seen Demiurge so worked up.

However, in this situation that was filled with so much hostility, all eyes were trained on Albedo's figure. She was calm, composed, and unmoving.

"This is Lady Tiamat's decision. How can we as her subordinates oppose—"

"—Why?"

Demiurge cut her off, and he continued.

"When she left all by herself to E-Rantel, even Lord Ainz insisted on having her guarded by her Dragon. You should be worried about her safety now even more than before. So why did you agree to this now?"

Albedo inclined her head in response, and Demiurge's face visibly contorted.

"Then I'll ask you again! Why did you permit this?!"

His anger seemed to shake the room. The intensity was completely unlike the Demiurge whom they were familiar with

Cocytus who was also inside the room, slowly turned his head, looking at his comrades staring each other down, worry visible in his eyes. Just as he was about to rebuke Demiurge for his unacceptable behaviour in front of Lord Ainz, the Undead raised his voice.

"That is enough, Demiurge," Ainz said with a sense of finality and Demiurge backed down, bowing while he did so.

He couldn't believe that he had lost his composure in front of Lord Ainz. Such behaviour was unbefitting of a Floor Guardian of Nazarick.

"Albedo, is there something you have kept from me?"

Albedo stiffly nodded. With that response, Cocytus and Demiurge exhaled sharply.

"So you were aware of this?" Ainz questioned the Succubus.

"Yes…"

"YOU FOOL!"

Ruled by anger and anguish, Ainz's shout echoed through the room.

The Floor Guardians who were present recoiled like they had been struck by lightning. Ainz felt something suppress his emotions, but even as his initial rage was cut off, it surged right back up instantly. There was no way he would let this shitty emotional suppression stop him.

"Why did you not tell me about this? Why were you trying to keep this away from me?"

"Lady Tiamat and I made a promise."

"Explain!"

"That's…"

Ainz's eyes flared as he looked on at Albedo, who was unable to answer him.

"Bring me the『Crystal Monitor』and locate Tiamat's whereabouts," Ainz ordered. "Now!"

( ﹏⁰)｡

The beeps of『Message』rung twice, and Ainz's voice filled her head.

[Return to Nazarick. Right now.]

[That was quick…] she replied nonchalantly.

[What are you doing? You know there's no way for you to win this fight!]

[I know.]

[Then why?]

She looked up at where the watchful eye of『Crystal Monitor』was watching her closely. Even though she didn't know its exact location, she could still somewhat feel its general position.

She knew anyone who was there with Ainz would be able to read her lips.

That was why she said it outloud.

"I'm not going back to Nazarick. Not until I bring Shalltear back."

[Tia, listen to me—]

"Ainz, I'm not returning. I will bring Shalltear back."

"You'll die!" Unknowingly, Ainz had shouted out loud to both the『Message』and inside the room.

A sense of foreboding chilled Albedo's soul. Perhaps Demiurge was right. What was she thinking?

As the Overseer of Nazarick she should have planned more; she should've at least offered another solution.

But somehow the solution Lady Tiamat offered seemed to fit the occasion, which was why she had agreed.

"Please don't blame Albedo for this. I was the one who forced her to keep her promise."

[Why would you do this?]

"Because you are Ainz, the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown. Nazarick needs you more than me."

[You know that isn't true.]

"If you failed to defeat Shalltear, then who would be able to take your place? _No one_. I'm expendable, Ainz. Please understand, no one can afford to lose you..." she said, her voice almost cracking.

From what they could read from Lady Tiamat's lips, the Floor Guardians inside the room could grasp what Ainz-sama was trying to say to the Dragoness.

There was nothing they could do but to heed the order from the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown himself, so their eyes remained glued to the monitor in front of the Supreme Being.

When Ainz saw the tears streaming slowly down her cheeks, he quieted down.

He should've known Tiamat would react this way; she was never the most logical person. She always let her feelings and emotions lead the way.

He knew what she was thinking, and her concerns for the future. Especially if something went wrong.

Ainz laying dead under the Bloody Valkyrie, beaten down to the dirt.

The Floor Guardians on a crusade of vengeance, leaving her all alone in a broken, bleeding world.

She wiped her tears and looked towards Shalltear whose eyes were still impassive, and steeled her resolve. This was something she had to do. No matter how absurd.

For her, this was the only logical solution.

"Albedo, if you're there, I'm sorry. I have to break my promise to you. But as I said, Ainz is so much more important to Nazarick than I am. That's why I want you, all of you, to heed my words carefully."

Albedo couldn't take her eyes off the monitor as she clutched her hands to her chest while her heart hammered against her ribcage.

Even Demiurge and Cocytus looked closely, deciphering every word that came from her lips.

"If I die today, then using the information gained from this battle, I want Demiurge to create a new plan using the skills you've learned about Shalltear. I'll try to draw out as many skills as I possibly can so that you can counter each and every one of them. Ask Ainz if there are any skills that are left, their weaknesses, and how to counter them. If I'm not mistaken, aside from Pandora's Actor, Ainz knows more about Shalltear's skills than I do."

[All the more reason for me to fight Shalltear instead of you.] Ainz replied, voice heavy and tired.

"But can you do it?"

Tiamat looked up at the sky, her eyes hard and determined. It was as if she was staring right at the four of them through the monitor.

"Are you able to kill Peroroncino's creation? Can you handle that burden?" she continued, challenging Ainz to answer.

She already knew the answer to this question.

Ainz loved his friends' creations _so so so_ much, that Tiamat couldn't bear seeing him hurt. Even though she knew it would be the wrong course of action.

"That's why I'll go. I'll carry this burden for you so you don't have to," she looked up into the sky and gave a shaky smile.

"If I die today, I want you to know that I love you all. Perhaps you won't be able to forgive me after this, but that's fine. No matter what happens, please know that I will always, _always_ love you. All of you."

With that she ended the『Message』.

( ﹏⁰)｡

Ainz put his hand down, staring at the blank monitor with flickering red eyes.

Albedo, Demiurge, and Cocytus had received Lady Tiamat's message to them loud and clear. Perhaps, this could be their last memory of her.

After a few seconds had passed, Ainz suddenly slammed his skeletal hand on the table, almost breaking it in half. The Floor Guardians who were present flinched at Lord Ainz's abrupt hostility.

Even with his unmoving features, they all knew that Lord Ainz was enraged.

"Albedo," he said in a deceptively small voice, hissing with hostility. "I'll ask you again. Why did you permit this?"

To him, what Tiamat and Albedo did was the essence of stupidity and recklessness. All the rage his emotional suppression had been holding down, burst up like magma and just as destructive. It consumed all that he was, everything underneath his smooth skeleton exterior.

Albedo shriveled, and Ainz continued.

"Tell me everything Albedo," he didn't want to threaten her, but if she insisted on being silent, then she offered him no choice. "Or you will be relieved from your position as the Overseer of Nazarick."

Immediately, all of the Floor Guardians' eyes went wide in disbelief. Cocytus even huffed out cold breath to show how shocked he was.

To pull someone, especially a Floor Guardian, away from their designated, coded, position was the worst punishment Ainz could ever bestow. It meant that the person involved was not needed in Nazarick anymore.

The lowest of the low.

If they didn't have a master to serve, then they were lower than bugs. But if the master himself said that he didn't need them anymore, then they might as well kill themselves. For even that could not cleanse the stain of failure.

"No!" Albedo fell in front of where Ainz was sitting. "Please, Lord Ainz! Anything but that!"

Of course, Ainz was not that stupid, this was just a mere threat. He knew how much the Floor Guardians valued their job, and it made him a little sick to resort to something this low. He knew no one in Nazarick would be able to replace Albedo or any of the Floor Guardians,

They were specifically designed for Nazarick and Nazarick only. A wave of possessiveness ran through him like a wave. They could only work for Nazarick, and he would kill anyone who would take them away from him.

Then he realized, perhaps this was what Tiamat was talking about? Even though his emotions were suppressed, he was still an undead. A being with intense possessiveness. There was a possibility that this particular desire would cloud his judgement while fighting with Shalltear.

Would he ever be able to face Peroroncino knowing that Shalltear's blood was on his hands? Or even on Tiamat's hands? His skeletal fingers grinded against the bones of his palm.

No, he wouldn't be able to.

But Tiamat was the same. In fact, she was far more emotional and possessive over the Floor Guardians than he was.

What angered him more was that Tiamat kept this to herself. It made Ainz realized just how little she trusted him. Even so, the plan that the two of them had created made no sense to him.

_'If her purpose was to gather information, shouldn't she have started with the resources within Nazarick first? This absolute idiot...'_

Seeing that Ainz-sama was still waiting for her response, Albedo finally relented.

"When you called me that day to the Throne Room to look at Lady Tiamat's status, after you left, Lady Tiamat and I...made a plan in case something happened to the personnels of Nazarick."

Ainz saw no correlation between this question and how they came to create that plan, but he urged her to continue, "And?"

Albedo furrowed her eyebrows in frustration as she struggled with the guilt of breaking her promise to her Lady.

"The plan was that in any occasion where something extraordinary happened and required either Lady Tiamat or Lord Ainz to step in, Lady Tiamat would go first. She convinced me that with her defensive build she would be able to tank any attack, or at least stall the enemy until Demiurge and I could come up with a plan. Our code was lemon chewies; whenever she cooked lemon chewies and if I ate them, the plan would proceed."

"However, Lord Ainz, Albedo should have known that Lady Tiamat was lying," Demiurge protested, his voice low and angry.

Deciding to disregard what Demiurge had just said, Ainz raised his voice. "Really now? She managed to convince you just like that?"

"Yes," Albedo answered instantly, "At the time, I found myself disagreeing with her proposal, but as she talked more and more, I was convinced in the end."

"What did she say to convince you?"

"Lady Tiamat talked about the state of Nazarick if you were to disappear. She stated that no one in Nazarick, including her, could lead Nazarick aside from yourself. She mentioned that in the game of chess, the King falls back and lets his subordinates carry out his will, while the Queen is the one who attacks. Although I am not familiar with the terms she was using, I understood what she was trying to say."

Albedo looked at the『Crystal Monitor』with a trusting expression on her face. But that expression of hers only angered the people in the room.

"If you look at Lady Tiamat right now, she has a look of great conviction on her face. Perhaps it is disloyal for me to think in this way, but I trust Lady Tiamat in her intent to see her conviction to the end. She also promised the twins that she would bring Shalltear back to Nazarick, and I believe in her. That is why I will not say anything more."

Ainz whose jaw was wide open from Albedo's explanation finally shut it. Because deep inside, he also felt that somehow there was a chance his friend would win.

Once they saw that Albedo would not continue, Demiurge finally let loose.

"You are being naive and irrational. You are making decisions based on your feelings. Lady Tiamat and Lord Ainz are the only two Supreme Beings who have benevolently chose to stay here with us. It is our duty to protect them when we know their life is in danger. Even when they disagree, we should still perish for their sake, should we not?"

Demiurge sprang up from where he sat and bowed to Ainz, "Lord Ainz, just give the word and I will send my minions."

"It's no use Demiurge," Ainz wearily replied, "Tiamat had asked Aureole Omega to lock the teleportation gates, and she has refused to accept any『Message』requests sent her way. And if you were to send your minions into the battle, they would simply be used to fuel Shalltear's HP. Anyways, it appears that they are about to fight soon."

Through the monitor he saw that Tiamat had walled off the spot with a 『Dimensional Lock』around Shalltear so that neither could escape, as well as limiting Shalltear's maneuverability.

"Cocytus," Ainz called out, "What do you think of Tiamat's odds?"

Despite the trepidation in his heart, Cocytus calmly informed the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown of his opinion.

"One. To. Nine. With. Lady. Tiamat. Being. One."

Albedo and Demiurge's shoulders quaked. They couldn't pretend that they didn't hear those words from Cocytus, the mightiest warrior present.

However, Ainz was indifferent.

"Is that so?"

Then he did something the Floor Guardians did not expect him to do.

Ainz Ooal Gown laughed at his friend's upcoming battle.

"I see, that possibility does exist, doesn't it? In that case, use this as an opportunity to learn about why you should never underestimate your opponent."

( ﹏⁰)｡

After Tiamat closed the『Message』with Ainz, she took a deep breath.

She tried to recall the one time Perorocino blabbed on and on about Shalltear's build. All she had to watch out for was her 『Detect Life Essence』 the one that allowed the caster to view the health values of an enemy, 『Detect Mana Essence』 which allowed Shalltear to see her remaining MP, 『Time Reverse』a skill that allowed her to completely negate one attack, and 『Einherjar』 which was Shalltear's trump card.

'_Right, so I have to buff myself as well to negate the effects of her attack._'

With her high resist, she wouldn't have to worry as much about debuffs, but a few precautions couldn't hurt.

'_Remember. Remain calm, and don't waste time thinking about insignificant things._' A wonderful message from Punitto Moe, Nazarick's greatest strategist.

But she could not stop her hands from shaking.

Because she knew that what came next would not be a game with no stakes but a battle to the death. This was real, and one of them would die today.

She clenched her fist.

'_You should've died there, but this time someone gave you another chance. This time, it's up to **you** to protect your loved ones._'

The memories of her painful past somehow gave her the strength to continue.

She slowly whispered, "I am Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons. I can do this."

She promised the twins that she would bring Shalltear back after all. That was why dying was not an option.

Her sharp amethyst eyes looked at Shalltear's figure, remembering what happened a few minutes ago.

When she approached Shalltear, the Valkyrie didn't consider her action to be a sign of hostility, just like how it was in the game.

That was why she would make her first move.

"『Blessing of Fire』, 『Magic Ward: Holy』, 『Astral Sight』, 『Greater Resistance』, 『Greater Luck』, 『Draconic Power』,『Heavenly Aura』,『Greater Magic Shield』, 『Greater Agility』—"

Various buff spells were casted and surrounded her body in a shimmering aura.

"First of all," she raised her hand, "『Dimensional Lock』."

With this, Shalltear wouldn't be able to teleport away from the area.

She needed Shalltear to use up her mana and 『Einherjar』 first.

Looking at Shalltear one last time, Tiamat pulled out an ornate scroll with a myriad of priceless jewels orbiting it from her Inventory. Normally, only high-tier mages had access to the ridiculously powerful Super Tier spells, but there were a few ways to get around that.

Tiamat took a deep breath in and exhaled, activating the expensive Divine Class sealing scroll in her hand. The gems around the scroll shined with a brilliant light before bursting into pieces, the scroll burning up with them.

And so she activated her first Super Tier spell ever since she had arrived in the New World.

"Super Tier Spell - Plane of Nine Hells 『Phlegethos』."

The sound of sizzling filled the forest as the very air was burned away.

The spell which surpassed the very definition of tiers went off, and it was as if the sun had fallen to the earth, dying everything with a brilliant light.

Once the glare subsided, a large fiery mountain broke through the clouds, and quickly descended down to where the still Shalltear was standing.

The molten behemoth slammed into the ground with titanic force, instantly flattening all the trees in its vicinity, creating violent tremors that could be felt all the way from E-Rantel. Everyone in the city looked towards the direction of the impact in terror while Ainzach and the rest of the Mythril Adventurers broke out in cold sweat.

When the fiery light had died down, the area which was once a forest now resembled a fiery world of eternal damnation, filled with smoldering volcanoes, rivers of liquid fire, molten rock, ash hills, smoking pits, and an unbearable heat that would incinerate the lungs of any normal human.

The air itself was set aflame as burning lava poured out of the fissures of the earth's crust.

『Phlegethos』, A Super Tier spell that summoned the city of Abriymoch, an infernal metropolis built with hardened magma, obsidian, and crystals in the caldera of an extinct volcano

Super Tier Spells could be considered spells, yet were not spells at the same time. To begin with, they did not consume MP, but in return, could only be used a limited number of times per day.

Anyone, even people with a limited number of mage classes, could learn a single Super Tier spell per level. Every ten levels after level seventy gave the caster an additional use per day. Of course, they still required the requisite seventy mage classes to obtain access to Super Tier spells, a requisite that Tiamat had not met.

In YGGDRASIL, they were considered more to be skills than spells.

The insane change in temperature alone had consumed all vegetation in the area, leaving behind the stumps charred trees and smoking rocks.

But two beings could be seen from a distance, the only living creatures to have survived the fatal heat.

"Kakakahaaah~ Kahaaah~"

That laughter that was accompanied by the sound of teeth grinding against each other caused Tiamat to wince.

She turned to look at Shalltear, whose crimson pupils were filled with bloodlust and murderous intent as wisps of smoke trailed from her body.

"So even you can pack a punch when you feel like it, My Lady!"

Step by step, she walked towards the Dragoness, the Spuit Lance in her hand cutting the air she moved closer and closer. Shalltear slowly walked forward until she realized the two of them were separated by a small lake of lava.

The『Pit of Flame』, a boiling lake of magma. Shalltear paid close attention to it; if she were to somehow land there, she would most definitely be finished.

"To think I would get to defeat the Goddess of Dragons herself, arinsu!" Shalltear laughed and laughed, "Wonderful! Do you know what they say about you My Lady?" she leered at Tiamat, a patronizing grin on her face.

"You're the weakest dragon in all existence, an absolute loser, arinsu! A Dragon who can't fight, that's what they call you!"

"Is that so…"

The Dragoness replied nonchalantly, further enraging Shalltear. She wanted the Goddess of Dragons to awaken her hot passion for war, just like what she herself had.

"What if I say I don't want to fight?"

Shalltear's face scrunched up, confused.

"Not...fight, arinsu? Is that possible? No wait. In the first place, why should I fight with her? Is it because she attacked first? Why is that?"

Before long, Shalltear seemed to have come to a conclusion, and her twisted smile from earlier returned to her face.

"I'm not sure why we have to fight, but I need to destroy you with all my strength, My Lady~"

"Well, looks like there's no other option then..." Tiamat muttered to herself.

Shalltear who could not hear what the Dragoness said, desired to agitate her even further. She wanted to see her drowning in the carnal lust of blood and war, to have her attack with all her might before finally succumbing to her.

Her grin became even wider.

"Oho, what's wrong My Lady?"she taunted, "Is it possible for someone as weak as you to beat me?"

Moving with a speed that put tempests to shame, the lava suddenly surged towards Shalltear, catching her off guard, and she jumped further away from the Supreme Being.

"Ooooh, an automatic attack environment? How scary, arinsu~"

Before she could continue taunting, Shalltear saw something move at the very edge of the scorched ground, just behind Tiamat. An angel was slowly gliding towards her. Shalltear knew of this summon, but she wasn't prepared for what Tiamat was going to say next.

"Seraph Empyreans, attack Shalltear."

The highest tiered angels commenced their attack. 『Tune of the Black Song』was immediately casted twice, and with each line they sang, the Angels formed a ring of melodious runes that circled the area around Shalltear, slowly draining her HP.

Shalltear realized she had to get rid of that pest before it was too late.

Before Tiamat could even blink, Shalltear was right in front of the angel.

She thrust her Spuit Lance forward, aiming to end the Seraph Empyrean before it could deal too much damage, but before her hit could land, Tiamat activated her passive aura.

"『Phobos Ambience』," a warm and luminous emanation wrapped itself around Tiamat.

『Phobos Ambience』, a passive aura that set the hate values of allies to zero, thereby forcing enemy mobs to attack the wielder rather than another target. Now, Shalltear could only focus on Tiamat and no one else in her field of vision.

"How annoying!" Shalltear roared as she felt an unbreakable compulsion to target Tiamat instead of the Empyrean, and in the heat of the moment, she cast her spell.

"『Maximize Magic-Vermilion Nova』!"

She watched gleefully as the crimson blaze engulfed the Dragoness. "Ahahaha~! Are those flames too hot for you, arinsu?"

To her shock, she heard a resolute voice cry out "『Overloaded Dragon's Breath』!"

A split second later, a torrent of intense blue dragonflame engulfed her body. Shalltear snarled as she felt her health plummet from the furious inferno.

'_There's no way such a skill should be able to dish out that kind of damage!_'

Here, Shalltear realized that the spell Lady Tiamat had casted to summon the new environment might have buffed her fire spells and skills.

She clicked her tongue at the realization, but smiled in the end when she remembered that the environment affected both parties who were present, not just the summoner.

Shalltear examined the Dragoness's remaining health using『Life Essence』and was surprised to see it was barely scratched.

Her eyes widened.

No matter how powerful one was, one could not resist all elemental attacks. Even a heteromorph character who combined their racial resistances with job classes that granted resistances and outfitted themselves from head to toe in resistance-granting divine class gear could not make themselves immune to elements to which they should've been weak to.

And here, much to her dismay, Shalltear had found out that Tiamat, as an unspecialized dragon heteromorph, was immune to fire.

'_Troublesome!'_

"You casted 『Vermillion Nova』 this early, Shalltear? I thought you were going to defeat me," the Dragoness taunted, casually stepping out from the fiery depths of the Nova.

"Tch!" with the initial impact of『Phlegethos』, the two angels slowly draining her HP, and the empowered fire damage that Tiamat had just dealt to her, her HP was already more than half gone.

To see the Dragoness in battle was something rare, but to fight her one on one caused a warm sensation to build up in her belly. Never in her life had she been humiliated like this, but she should have known that Lady Tiamat would satisfy her through combat.

Shalltear looked at Tiamat with lust-moistened eyes and licked her lips. If she continued lengthening the distance between them, then the angel would definitely reduce her HP to nothing once it exploded.

Right now, she needed HP more than ever.

"Time to recover, 『Regeneration』!"

'_This is it!_'

This was the moment Tiamat had been waiting for.

"Nope! 『Censure of Vritra』!" a complex runic circle surrounded Tiamat as a serpent born from a pitch-black inferno wrapped itself around Shalltear.

Shalltear gnashed her teeth in frustration as she saw the 『Heal Block』and『Burn』debuffs show up on her status. The green aura surrounding her faded as『Regeneration』attempted to restore her health only to be devoured by the infernal serpent bound to her.

Tiamat let out a tired smile. This fight couldn't be going any better.

'_What will you do now, Shalltear?_'

( ﹏⁰)｡

The Floor Guardians couldn't believe the incredible sight they were currently seeing.

Through the small monitor, they all watched as Lady Tiamat overpowered Shalltear.

"Cocytus, didn't you say that the odds would be one to nine, with Lady Tiamat being one?" asked Demiurge, confused with how well the battle was going.

There was no way the strongest warrior present had made a mistake in calculating the odds of the battle.

A chilly mist poured out from Cocytus's jaws, "That. Is. True. Considering. Lady. Tiamat's. Build. There. Was. No. Way. She. Would. Be. Able. To. Defeat. Shalltear. The. Strongest. Floor. Guardian. Out. Of. All. Of. Us."

A clear voice rang throughout the room, belonging to the only Undead present.

"No."

The Floor Guardians turned their heads towards where Ainz sat.

"You all may not recall, but Tiamat had once won against Touch Me in an informal PvP match thanks to her once per day summons. However, Shalltear is the worst possible match up for her since she can easily convert her summons into HP. "

Ainz drew in a deep breath as he saw her use『Censure of Vritra』 against Shalltear. Seeing her use that skill was a rare sight, and it proved just how strong of an opponent Shalltear was in this match up.

"Moreover," he continued. "With Shalltear's build, she can easily outlast Tiamat thanks to her life-sustaining abilities and the Divine Magic Caster skills she still has up her sleeves. What you've seen so far is just the tip of the iceberg."

Cocytus looked back at the screen, huffing his breath one more time.

He felt bad that he had judged his Lady's skills so poorly, but that was the truth. Lady Tiamat had the lowest physical and magical attack out of all the Supreme Beings in Nazarick save for a few. Her defensive build and her summons were her only saving graces.

He predicted that the battle they were witnessing would be a long one.

( ﹏⁰)｡

The two Seraph Empyreans steadfastly continued their 『 Black Song』, and from『Detect Life Essence』, it seemed that Shalltear was at the end of her rope.

However, Tiamat was growing more and more wary as Shalltear still hadn't refused to use her trump card.

『Einherjar』.

『Einherjar』 allowed Shalltear to summon a copy of herself, without skills or spells. Although weakened in that sense, it still meant that Tiamat had to deal with two Shalltears at the same time.

One would most likely attack from a distance with spells, while the other would take advantage of her abysmal agility to chip away at her health.

Moreover, the fact that the copy had the exact same equipment as Shalltear meant that they would be able to quickly regain any health lost.

That was why she has to finish this as fast as possible.

Three more minutes. Just three more minutes until the Seraph Empyreans would reach critical mass and damage Shalltear in accordance to the HP they had stolen.

However, those three minutes felt like an eternity.

Because of 『Phobos Ambience』, Shalltear had given up on attacking the Seraph Empyreans and immediately shot towards her. Shalltear unleashed a barrage of her strongest spells, and even Tiamat's HP took a noticeable dip.

If it wasn't for her defensive build, her HP would have been significantly less than half at this point.

"『Firaga』!"

A bright red runic circle appeared on the ground where Shalltear stood.

In panic, Shalltear screamed out, "『Greater Teleportation』!"

Her plan was to engage the Dragoness in melee combat and force her into a battle of attrition with Spuit Lance.

However, as her field of vision distorted, she found herself forced back to her original location.

"Tch! So you blocked all methods of Teleportation huh?" she clicked her tongue, "Then, 『Wall of Stone』!"

Tiamat predicted that she would either attempt to block the spell or run away, but it didn't matter. Either way, she would make sure that Shalltear would taste defeat this day.

"『Holy Awe』!" A Priestess spell that focused on stunning opponents and had a more potent effect on targets with low karma. All she needed to do was to have Shalltear crippled for just a few seconds so that『Firaga』would hit her.

A blood curdling scream arose from Shalltear as her body steamed from the damage『Holy Awe』 and 『Firaga』 had dealt her.

Three minutes had passed.

"This is my win, Shalltear!" and like a quick gust of wind, the two angels circled Shalltear, who tried to escape only to be tailed by the two Empyreans.

Shalltear could not attack the angels due to 『Phobos Ambience』.

A resounding _boom_ filled the forest.

The world became a hellscape of black and white as the explosion erased color itself from the world.

A pulse of heat ripped through the area as a blast wave wiped away the remains of the flattened and charred trees. Even those who were far away could feel it.

Just as Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix sat down on his red sofa, he could see a small tremor run along the rim of his wine glass.

A book fell from its stack in the library of Slane Theocracy, and Maximilian curiously looked up from his paperwork.

As the Golden Princess was pouring a cup of tea for Lakyus, her poised form trembled and spilled a few droplets of the tea onto the white table cloth.

That was how far the impact reached.

As the heat pulse grew in intensity, it burned Igvarge and his team's dead bodies to charred, unrecognizable corpses. The shockwave violently rocked the surroundings and nearly blew Tiamat away.

She shielded her eyes with her hands and dug into the ground with her feet as she felt the aftermath of the『Tune of the Black Song』.

The explosion was the Seraph Empyreans' last attack. Nothing could block it, and there was nothing Shalltear could do to postpone her inevitable doom.

Tiamat breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's over…"

However, she was still filled with a sense of dread.

Slowly, she carefully approached the crater where Shalltear once stood, her bloodstream pumping with adrenaline.

The explosion had completely wiped the 『Pit of Flame』 from existence. All that remained was rubble.

Just as she got close to the pile of ruin, she noticed blood was dripping onto the ground where she stood, and as her adrenaline slowly wore off, she felt a heavy pressure on her stomach. Tiamat fell to the ground as a tsunami of agony slammed into her

All she could feel was overwhelming pain as the Lance twisted more and more inside her stomach.

A quick look at her status, and she saw one thing in particular.

『Bleeding』, A debuff that ignored defenses and resistances.

"Oya~ Congratulations My Lady!" Shalltear's mocking voice could be heard from behind the smoke as the Vampire's silhouette gradually gave way to Shalltear in all her glory, unharmed.

The Spuit Lance shone brightly as it slowly drained away her HP.

She had to get out.

Unfurling her wings, she jumped a few meters away from Shalltear as she gasped for air, pushing down the unbearable pain that she felt.

"It seems that I have underestimated you, Lady Tiamat, arinsu~ You're the first person who's managed to force me to use my Resurrection Item in a one on one match. What an achievement!" Shalltear cackled as she gloated at the gaping hole in Tiamat's stomach.

Tiamat forgot that Perorocino had given Shalltear a resurrection item.

'_DAMN IT!_'

A wide grin was plastered on Shalltear's face.

"Ara~ Was that all My Lady? I hope you're not too tired, after all, I'm just getting started~"

* * *

**A/N: Dang, now I understand why most authors on this website say writing fighting scenes are hard. I should've known when I wrote that Pandemonium battle. But the hardest part was to create new spells for Tia. My brainnnn… However, reading the chapter again was so fun! The tension, the blood shed, the panic! AAAAAAAAAA. If anyone of you readers had any input for what kind of spell or skill Tiamat might use, please tell me in the reviews!**

**Hackslashbash: Part two will be coming soon to a site near you! Leave a comment in the box below! And don't forget to smash that subscribe button and ring the notification bell, thumbs up, follow, fav, clean the dishes and throw out the garbage. Also, please join the discord. The link is both on my and Imaweeaboo's profile. Again, thanks for reading!**


	16. CHAPTER 16: From the Maw of Sorrow

**19/03/2020: Reuploaded**

* * *

**Chapter 16: From the Maw of Sorrow**

* * *

'_This is not good._'

It was like watching the jumps between the scenes of a movie. Her unbelieving eyes stared at the lance that was buried deep inside her stomach. An image zoomed into her mind: a close up vortex of angles, several shades of maroon of her dress, and the blood mixing together to become a new hue of red and brown.

She could only watch as the point of the lance ripped through her skin and muscle, right into her organs. The vivid image and the pain she felt as she collapsed to the ruined ground was unlike any she had felt before.

It came in varying degrees of intensity: sometimes small twinges, sometimes jolts of agony, all within the gaping wound.

Tiamat wavered in and out of consciousness as she struggled to spread the wings on her back to get away from the lance as fast as possible, all as spasms of pain attacked her body at the slightest movements.

All she could hear was Shalltear's laughter between her ragged breathing.

"Thank you for the delicious meal, Lady Tiamat~"

Shalltear's resurrection item thankfully only restored her HP, and not MP. Now she only had the remaining MP she had from fighting Tiamat before she was blown into atoms, but her HP was back in full.

Tiamat had made a huge blunder.

'_How could I forget that Peroroncino gave Shalltear a resurrection item?!_'

She looked back at her status screen,『Bleed』.

『Bleed』 was most probably the worst possible debuff she could receive. It dealt damage over time based on a percentage of her total health, and if not for her high Resist stat, she would have already lost nearly half of her remaining health.

She had to heal up before this could drag on any longer.

Just as she was about to cast her healing spell, Shalltear appeared right in front of her in a blink of an eye, the Spuit Lance aimed at her head.

"『Aegis』!" Tiamat cried out panickedly. A transparent golden globe enveloped her, repelling the Spuit Lance. Shalltear clicked her tongue in annoyance.

She jumped back from where the Dragoness stood, kicking up a small cloud of dust as she did. The only way to discern the Supreme Being's weaknesses was to use『Detect Life Essence』 to check her HP while barraging her with attacks of various elements to see which ones hurt her the most.

But Shalltear was smarter than that. She would only use elements which the Dragoness should be weak against.

She knew now that the Supreme Being was immune to fire.

'_How typical,_' she thought to herself. But she should've known, considering Lady Tiamat was a dragon.

"『Maximize Magic- Brilliant Radiance』."

A pillar of holy light crashed around the form of the Dragoness, and Shalltear smiled happily as she saw the Dragoness standing still in the radiant column.

However, her smile fell when she saw that Lady Tiamat was using her MP to prolong 『Aegis』, thus rendering her attack useless.

The two of them locked eyes, and Shalltear angrily recasted the spell with a frustrated shout.

Once again, a beam of purifying light engulfed Tiamat, who yet again stood stock-still in the wake of the divine arcana.

Shalltear threw one spell after another at the Dragoness who blocked each and every one of them, staggering back with each hit. When Shalltear looked at her HP using 『Detect Life Essence』 she saw that her opponent's HP had even raised a little bit.

In the midst of Shalltear casting her spells, Tiamat had casted 『Full Cure』 on herself, curing herself of her『Bleed』status.

Shalltear gritted her teeth. As she had expected, Spuit Lance couldn't critically injure the Dragoness due to her ridiculous defense. The Divine Class lance would've easily impaled anyone else, but Shalltear could feel the thickness of the Dragoness's skin pushing back against the Lance. Although Spuit Lance had managed to drill itself inside the Supreme Being's abdomen, Shalltear couldn't say that it was easy to pierce the skin of the dragon heteromorph.

'_Truly, the scales of a Dragon._'

Realizing that she was getting nowhere with her meaningless stabbing, Shalltear decided to change her strategy. Since the Dragoness had so much more HP compared to MP, the vampire's plan was to empty all her MP so that there would no way for the Dragoness to defend herself against her spells.

Using 『Detect Mana Essence』, Shalltear noticed that Lady Tiamat's MP was greatly reduced from when they first started brawling.

From behind the warm light of『Aegis』, Tiamat tried to calmly study Shalltear who had momentarily ceased her relentless assault.

'_What should I do…?!_'

As someone who had played support, she didn't have a lot of job classes that were suitable for DPS. Instead, she relied more on her racial class skills, which although were quite strong on their own, were not enough to contest with those who focused more on attack power. Her lack of attack stats didn't help either.

The only way for her to be able to push Shalltear back was to generate DPS equivalent to that of a tenth tier spell, and all she had were her 『Dragon's Breath』, fire spells, and her healing spells.

And Shalltear was far from finished.

(;﹏;)

The Guardians watched as Shalltear and Lady Tiamat fired various bolts of arcana and traded blows with each other from the『Crystal Monitor』.

The battle was the longest PvP match Cocytus had ever seen.

With Lady Tiamat's high defenses and Shalltear's high attack, the battle was always, _always_, going in Shalltear's favor.

The Dragoness simply had no spells or skills that could decrease Shalltear's HP by a significant enough amount.

Whenever Lady Tiamat would bring Shalltear's HP down, she would restore it with 『Regeneration』or 『Greater Lethal』, not to mention the passive leech effect of Spuit Lance.

Moreover, whenever the Goddess was within reach, Shalltear would simply evade any attempts at melee combat with her high agility. Furthermore, it was difficult for Lady Tiamat to catch up to her, making it easy for Shalltear to just harass her from a distance.

Even when Shalltear was within the Goddess's range, Shalltear could just simply thrust Spuit Lance, and the battle would once again turn to her favor.

It was incredibly frustrating.

However, he was even more surprised to see the Dragoness hold out for so long in a one on one fight against Shalltear, the strongest Floor Guardian in Nazarick.

'_She. Is. Indeed. A. Being. Worthy. Of. Being. Called. A. Supreme. Being.'_

Cocytus exhaled another mist of frozen air.

Demiurge, noticing his reaction, asked him, "What's the matter Cocytus?"

"It. Is. Surprising. That. Our. Lady. Has. Held. Out. For. So. Long."

"Truly? Even so, the battle is definitely not in her favor."

"Indeed. If. She. Could. Last. This. Long. She. Might. Have. Other. Surprises. In. Store."

"Perhaps I may have been wrong in my estimation then," A hint of hope entered Demiurge's gemstone eyes as he turned his attention back to monitor with newfound eagerness.

However, a looming question hung in the mind of the Ruler of the Frozen Glacier. He was thinking about Lord Ainz's statement, and he wondered, to whom it was stated.

Was it directed to Lady Tiamat who was the clear underdog in this battle?

Or was it directed towards Shalltear?

(;﹏;)

'_Shit, I'm having a hard enough time as it is...'_

Tiamat helplessly watched as a ball of white light coalesced besides Shalltear, slowly shaping itself into a humanoid form.

Tiamat was very aware of what it was.

Her face grew stiff, and in contrast, Shalltear grinned as if she had scored an overwhelming victory.

"Finally…『Einherjar』," Tiamat whispered to herself.

The white form blinked.

If one ignored the bleached-white armor and the glowing skin, it was the spitting image of Shalltear.

Tiamat was fully aware of『Einherjar's』capabilities.

Another Shalltear that lacked spellcasting ability and several skills, but bore an identical copy of Shalltear's gear, magic accessories aside. A clone with the same stats that was identical to Shalltear in both resistances and immunities.

She had to fight two Shalltears, the thing she wanted to avoid the most in this fight.

Tiamat cursed under her breath.

However, Shalltear was far from finished.

"『Summon Household』."

The back of her armor bulged out, and a pair of bat wings burst forth, going straight through her armor plates as several giant bats flapped out from behind her to the sky. These were Elder Vampire Bats summoned through her household summons skill.

They were not strong enough to pierce through Tiamat's stats, so she wondered why exactly Shalltear had decided to bring out useless summons.

As Tiamat was mulling over her next move, 『Einherjar』 charged, surprising her.

Here, the best situation for Shalltear was to launch spells from a distance while 『Einherjar』 engaged her in a melee brawl.

Because of her low agility, it was easy for Shalltear to find an opening in her defense and attack.

So why wasn't Shalltear moving?

While blocking 『Einherjar』 with 『Aegis』, Tiamat saw the summoned minions disappearing one after another from the corner of her eyes.

"That's cheating!" she cried out loud.

Shalltear was killing her summoned minions with Spuit Lance to restore her health.

It went without saying that the amount of health restored by Spuit Lance depended on the amount of damage it inflicted. Compared to Tiamat who had much higher defense; it was immediately obvious which would give her more HP in return.

The summoned minions steadily died and vanished.

Since they were no longer bound by the rules of YGGDRASIL, friendly fire was in effect. Tiamat should've seen it coming.

'_How cruel…_'

Even if Tiamat was cornered, she would have never considered using any of her summons in such a horrific way. Just thinking about it brought a cold chill to her spine.

The very sight of the small creatures being stabbed and turned into paste before being absorbed by the Spuit Lance brought the taste of bile to her throat as she imagined the baby dragons in their stead.

Tiamat couldn't calm herself after witnessing Shalltear killing her own summons, a fact 『Einherjar』took advantage of as it caught her by surprise with a powerful stab to her back.

The Dragoness bit her tongue to hold back a scream of pain.

Casting 『Aegis』, she quickly blew『Einherjar』away.

She was in an overwhelmingly disadvantageous position. She was right in the middle of two Shalltears and both of them were about to impale her with their Spuit Lance.

Taken by instinct and panic, Tiamat brought out one of her strongest skills.

"『Nidhogg's Descent』!"

Tiamat had sixty racial levels.

Dragons as a class were quite popular among heteromorphs in YGGDRASIL, or any fantasy game in general.

However, it was tough for those players to reach the highest racial level. The amount of grinding involved took a lot more time and effort, as dragon racials required the most EXP out of any heteromorphic race. And although such classes granted generous amounts of stats, this perk was far outweighed by the lack of skills they provided.

In the end, those who reached the highest peak of the dragon evolution line were a scant few. And even then, those players were often weaker than those who focused on job classes.

This was because most players in YGGDRASIL pursued power. A high enough DPS or a cheat like build that could easily accrue victories were obviously going to be the modus operandi of most players.

However, to reach the same place that Tiamat was currently standing, the player had to climb an extra step from the beginning, and that was deliberately weakening the character they were playing.

A step that players would most likely skip, as it bore far too many penalties.

The Dragonling class. Practically babies who were incapable of doing anything.

Only those who took the Dragonling racial class could ever reach the God Beast class, the highest racial class for Dragons in YGGDRASIL, after they had invested more than half their levels into racial classes.

The class description stated, "Only a being who holds onto their pride as a Dragon will have their soul reformed and unimaginable power within their grasp. With a strengthened bond to the Devourer of the Nine Worlds, these beings can call upon it for its malicious power."

『Nidhogg's Descent』was a rare skill that could only be used once a week. As a result, she had never used it back in YGGDRASIL, constantly hoping to save it for an epic battle that would never come.

Tiamat shot up to the sky with an unnatural burst of speed, pausing at the apex as a swirling inferno of crimson-black charged within her maw. Her eyes flared with residual mana as the fearsome fires gathered.

'_Can't believe I'd actually get a chance to use this…_' she thought wryly.

A spiraling bolt of dark-red flames descended from Tiamat's jaws, dying the world with otherworldly malice.

Shalltear shielded her eyes as a twinge of fear made its way to her face.

'_What is this?!'_

Then everything surrounding her turned black.

All burnt down to ashes.

Unbearable heat bathed the entire area below her. The air was no longer breathable for any living creature, for if they did, their lungs would combust with a single breath.

The skill that was the definition of 'scorched earth.'

Nothing escaped this spell of hers, and through the effects of『Phlegethos』, the effect was boosted. The skill dealt true damage, bypassing any immunities or resistances, and greatly amplified weaknesses to demonic and fire damage.

Tiamat softly landed on the ground and looked around her surroundings in shock.

In YGGDRASIL, the environment would not have succumbed to any type of attack. But in the New World, the effects were appropriate to the skill.

After the glare had subsided, she saw herself standing in a glass crater, the rubble vaporized by the heat. Even a forest fire could not create such a thoroughly destroyed vista.

The wind blew, and ashes rose from the ground into the air, as they slowly gathered into a familiar form. Slowly and gradually, Tiamat could make out the appearance of the Valkyrie in the ash figure.

Shalltear took a step forward as the last trace of ash fluttered away from her cheek.

"Incredible, arinsu! It seems that I have underestimated you, My Lady! For you to burn away my entire HP pool with one skill... if it wasn't for my second『Time Reversal』, you would've won. However, you're out of trump cards now, arinsu!" she cackled.

Just by examining with『Detect Life Essence』, Shalltear could see that although Tiamat's HP was more than half, her MP had hit the bottom of the barrel. She might be able to use two or three more Defensive spells, but after that there was no way the Dragoness could protect herself against Shalltear's assault.

Shalltear's grin stretched to her ears.

She had won the battle.

There was no longer any doubt that she, Shalltear Bloodfallen was the victor, and Tiamat, the supposed Goddess of All Dragons was the loser.

Shalltear patronizingly congratulated the loser who had struggled so bravely until now.

"Truly, it was magnificent how you had almost depleted my MP and forced me to use up all my skills in order to drain your MP to this level. You are to be praised for lasting this long, arinsu~"

Shalltear tightened her grip on Spuit Lance. All she needed to do was to deliver the fatal blow in melee combat and feel the Dragoness's life ebb out of her dying eyes.

Shalltear slowly closed the distance between them. From the past few hours of fighting against the Dragoness, Shalltear was confident that she would be able to strike faster than her. Thus, there was no need for the vampire to be hasty.

"Any last words?"

Contrary to what Shalltear had expected, Tiamat did not flee, but instead proudly stood tall where she was. The determination exuding from her was unsettling.

She was not prepared for the Dragoness's next words.

"Well, since I'm probably going to die soon," Tiamat flicked the blood off her chin, "Do you mind twirling your parasol for me one last time?"

"Wha…?"

Shalltear doubted her ears. There was no way she heard something as stupid as that, right?

Ignoring Shalltear's confusion, Tiamat continued.

"Peroroncino told me a lot of things when he was making you. I can't say I remember all of it, but I know one thing for sure," she smiled warmly, "You look the prettiest when you twirl your parasol."

That was not what Shalltear wanted to hear.

She was expecting the mighty Dragon to beg for mercy and admit defeat.

Not...not _this._

"If I could see that one last time... I think I could die happy," Tiamat continued smiling.

That was not a lie.

Nothing she was saying was a lie.

The flow of blood meant nothing to the undead, but Shalltear could feel hers draining from her face as a wave of agitation spread through her body.

One particular thought crossed her mind.

'_She's insane!_'

No one in their right mind would be thinking of something so ridiculous when they were about to get killed.

It's as if the Dragoness was confident that she would win the fight.

Anxiety and unease grew within Shalltear's previously confident heart as she clutched her Spuit Lance even tighter, intending to finish the battle right away. Shalltear's lips parted and she howled, to better to vent the emotions welling up inside of her.

She was supposed to be the lion, and Lady Tiamat was supposed to be the rabbit!

—No that was wrong.

This should've been a battle between lions, but somehow, the one in front of her who was supposed to be a lion looked more like a _dragon_ instead.

"『Reality Slash』!" in that instant, Shalltear casted the highest DPS spell in YGGDRASIL.

Then something like bandlimited white noise and the sound of a flowing brook slowing down was heard.

Shalltear couldn't help but doubt her eyes.

In front of Shalltear, a black void fashioned in the form of a beastly maw _swallowed_ 『Reality Slash』before disappearing into thin air.

The vampire's heart raced, and she trembled. A foreign emotion shrouded her entire being as she licked her dry lips. Like an infection, it spread within milliseconds, permeating her entire body. Consuming ever fiber, every thought, every fleeting hope.

It was _fear_.

Somehow, Shalltear knew that eerie void was not the work of magic.

"W-Wh-What was that?!" Shalltear shrilly screeched.

She had never seen such a thing in her entire life.

The _black thing_ travelled back to the shadows of her Lady's dress, hidden yet again. Even as it disappeared, Shalltear knew that it was not a thing of this world, nor anything anyone at Nazarick could recreate, no matter how many lifetimes passed.

Tiamat looked at Shalltear. No, she was looking down on her.

Shalltear's face turned red with fury. She thought she knew everything about the Dragoness, and the fact that she was _wrong _fueled her rage. However, she didn't have any energy to spare on that thought because the Dragoness replied to her question.

"『World Eater: Maw of the Void』."

(;﹏;)

There was a loud clatter as Cocytus shot up from his seat.

Not just him, but even Demiurge and Albedo jolted back at the sight the monitor was displaying.

"Finally," Ainz muttered to himself.

Demiurge squinted at the crystal monitor as Lady Tiamat breathed the name of that..._thing_.

"『World Eater』..." he raised his glasses up, "It's shameful of me to say this, but I've never heard of that spell."

"Me. Too. I. Have. Fought. Many. Intruders. But. No. One. Had. That. Kind. Of. Ability," Cocytus exclaimed excitedly.

But all they got was one simple word in reply from the Overlord.

"No."

"No?" Albedo repeated, confused, "Forgive us for not knowing Lord Ainz, but what is _that_?"

"That is not a spell, that's a skill," Ainz simply explained.

"A. Skill?"

And so Ainz explained the nature of Tiamat's secret class.

World Eater, named after the last boss of the main campaign.

Ainz recalled the story of how she gained that class.

A skill from the shitty devs that all the members of Ainz Ooal Gown had gawked at.

This secret class allowed her to absorb attacks and return them with the same power _amplified _by a factor of her own physical and magical attack. The only drawback was that she had to withstand the enemy's onslaught without dying. Furthermore, the spell-absorption skill of the class was limited to only three uses a day.

Of course, with such a _cheat_ skill, almost everyone would be aiming for it. However the number of players who were able to use the skill could be counted on one hand. One.

And that was because of two reasons. One, because they didn't have high enough physical and magical defense stats to be able to use it without dying, and two was because…

There were too. many. fucking. criterias.

Most players quit halfway before they could finish.

As far as Ainz knew, Tiamat was the only one who was able to abuse the skill, tanking high-tiered spells from enemies and returning them manyfold was only possible because of her high defensive stats.

If Ainz were to receive a tenth tier spell three times in a PvP battle—despite his impressive magical resistance—his HP would be halved. But if it were Tiamat, her HP wouldn't suffer nearly as much. Moreover, it was boosted considerably by her God Beast class.

Something that many guildmates had pointed out to her when she joined Ainz Ooal Gown.

When the Floor Guardian heard this, they could only murmur in awe.

"To think that Lady Tiamat had such a powerful skill…"

Albedo's skin broke out in goosebumps.

At this point, Shalltear had used most of her skills, and her MP was almost gone as well.

The Succubus wrapped her arms around herself in reassurance.

One thought in particular crossed all the minds of all present.

'_She might win this battle._'

The battle that was stacked against her from the beginning.

"Astounding. To. Think. That. Lady. Tiamat. Had. Acquired. That. Particular. Skill. I. Am. In. Awe."

Though the battle had not yet been decided, the Guardians present were filled with incomparable reverence for Tiamat's experience that was able to guide her to victory in such a difficult battle.

As the Guardians watched the Crystal Monitor, their delight and awe growing within them, they waited excitedly for what was about to come.

(;﹏;)

"『Implosion』!" Shalltear screeched out, casting a tenth tier spell that caused the target to collapse or burst inward.

The Vampire's eyes were dyed an even deeper shade of red, and she scrambled back, looking at Tiamat in shock to see that her spell, even though it had definitely hit her target, was once again devoured by that strange void.

A waste of mana for Shalltear.

Shalltear leapt back, avoiding the Goddess entirely. The very fact that she had jumped so far away was a sign of how frightened she was.

"What's wrong Shalltear?"

The Dragoness, no, the _Goddess _in front of her was truly worthy of her title. To possess such a scary power…

When Tiamat stepped forward, Shalltear unconsciously took two steps back.

Looking at her status through both 『Detect Life Essence』 and 『Detect Mana Essence』, Shalltear could see that Tiamat's MP bar had even risen by a decent amount.

'_How! When I looked before her MP was…_'

As if the Goddess was reading her mind, she calmly explained to Shalltear.

"This skill allows me to recover MP equivalent to the cost of the spell I consumed. So thank you Shalltear," The Goddess grinned at her warmly.

Shalltear could only wail as she shortened the distance between the two of them in a flash, and as she brought her Spuit Lance down upon Tiamat's head, it was once again repelled back by a transparent golden shield.

Tiamat raised the palm of her hand and pointed it right at Shalltear's face.

"『World Eater: Disgorge』."

Pitch black mana surged around Tiamat's hand as it coalesced into the head of a titanic dragon. The dragon-shaped mana opened its massive maw and released all of the attacks Tiamat had sustained the entire battle. The Dragoness frowned as she noticed that Shalltear wasn't attempting to dodge.

'_Well, it's not like she can dodge at this range anyways…_'

Then her hopes were crushed as Shalltear cried out, "『Time Reversal』!"

A storm of spells and powerful blasts of force ripped through Shalltear; burning her body to crisp while lancing her through with the kinetic energy from her own Spuit Lance.

However, as if time had reversed itself, her body quickly reassembled itself, rendering the attack ineffective.

"If I can't fight you with spells," she thrust her lance at her shoulder, taking Tiamat off guard as a green aura surrounded Shalltear.

"Close range it shall be, My Lady~"

What happened next was a single sided _massacre_.

It was impossible for Tiamat to see Shalltear's attacks. More accurately, even though she could see where Shalltear was going to attack, it was impossible for her to dodge.

"Take this!" and as Shalltear shouted, the Spuit Lance impaled her once again.

Tiamat reflexively raised her hand and covered her eyes to defend her head as she was stabbed once more.

(;﹏;)

From within the Arena, they could all feel it.

They had all been peacefully sleeping, oblivious to the world, but then the overwhelming sadness, pain, and hurt came over them, and they didn't know why.

When it stopped, they walked it off, but it happened two more times.

They walked it off each time, but the second time it happened, they were too scared to sit back down and relax because they had no clue what was happening to them.

This incident especially stressed out the little ones.

After the third time, Pentakrisis tried to compose himself and flew around, but then he fell to the ground as he felt a sharp, stinging pain on his shoulder.

He, a Dragon who ruled the skies, felt _fear_.

He pulled himself to his feet and he _roared_.

That was because his immediate thought was of _her_.

This particular act had brought down the annoying hyper chibi.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

She tried to pat his scales to comfort him, but it was no use.

The hands were different. Her hands were smaller. It wasn't her hand.

_Don't touch me!_

He had to get out.

He had to go to where she was.

NOW!

He flapped his wings and flew away higher and higher towards the skies, but an invisible barrier stopped him.

It was the sky! So _whywhywhywhywhy?_

He roared once again, a roar so deafening that the children hid themselves behind the female chibi in fear.

He slammed his body against the sky over and over and over again, the shock-waves from the impact blowing back the trees around him.

_Letmeoutletmeout__**LETMEOUT**__!_

"I-I understand," the female chibi stuttered, "But first calm down! What would Lady Tiamat say if she saw you like this?"

_"That is precisely why! She needs me, so let me out, **RIGHT NOW**!"_

As soon as he said that, Aura's eyes jolted wide in understanding. She recalled how her own pets would react to the emotional turmoil of their master and immediately contacted Albedo through 『Message』.

[Albedo, is there something wrong with Lady Tiamat?]

However, Albedo did not answer. All Aura could hear was background static.

Aura tapped her foot impatiently.

She had to contact Ainz-sama.

And so she did.

(;﹏;)

_Beep Beep_

[Ainz-sama! Lady Tiamat, is there something wrong with Lady Tiamat?!]

Ainz chastised himself for his obvious blunder. Not all Floor Guardians knew what was happening.

And so, Ainz answered Aura's question honestly.

[Tiamat is currently fighting Shalltear.]

Right after Aura heard that, she was hit by a severe pain that rendered her speechless and breathless, followed by dimming vision and her eardrums pounded as everything around her grew distant distant.

She knew that both Supreme Beings were going to do everything in their power to bring Shalltear back; however, the very thought that Lady Tiamat was fighting Shalltear by herself didn't even cross her mind.

'_Is this what she meant when she promised that she would bring Shalltear back?'_

[Aura?!]

Ainz was a bit afraid that his voice was too panicked for a Supreme Being of Nazarick, but he was genuinely worried for Aura when he had heard her breath hitch against her throat and go quiet.

He knew just how much the Dragoness meant to the twins, and he could empathize with the terrifying feeling despite being an undead.

Afterall, he fully understood what it was like to lose a mother.

Unable to draw his eyes away from the monitor, he ordered one of the Floor Guardians to fetch the twins to the room.

"Fetch Aura and Mare and bring them here, now!"

Immediately, Albedo stood up and went out of the room, using the『Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown』to teleport to the sixth floor. As she stepped out into the Arena, she was greeted with chaos.

A titanic white dragon slamming himself against the fake sky.

Mare trying to comfort his sister.

And the wailing of unnamed baby dragons.

As soon as Albedo took in the distressing sight, she instantly knew what was going on.

The Dragons could feel the intense pain that Lady Tiamat was currently feeling, and Pentakrisis wanted to go to her side as soon as possible.

Her initial response was pity; however, that quickly changed to understanding.

Afterall, they all wanted to be by her side, fighting her fight, and supporting her just like how she supported them.

That was why, before Albedo could fulfill Ainz's request, she made one 『Message』 to a particular person on the Eighth Floor.

And just like that, a portal that led to the outside world opened wide, allowing the huge white Dragon to immediately leap to the other side of the portal, leaving his baby siblings behind.

(;﹏;)

Making use of her high agility, Shalltear leapt, dashed, and lunged all she could

Shalltear's onslaught restored her health, while Tiamat burned Shalltear with scorching spells and skills to negate the health Shalltear would gain.

Every time the lance scored a hit on her, it felt like her hold on reality was getting a little looser. Her vision felt fuzzier with each hit, and surprisingly, her wounds would hurt a little less each time.

Tiamat looked down. The ground was slippery with her blood. '_Definitely going into shock...'_

Seeing that she once again had the upper hand, joy filled Shalltear's heart and she felt that she still had a chance at victory. If they continued trading blows, then that would certainly be the case.

Abandoning all defense because of her empty mana pool, Shalltear threw herself into the assault wholeheartedly. She finally smiled as a light appeared in the darkness that was the long, long battle.

Shalltear laughed as she struck and was struck in return.

"I'll win this battle, arinsu!" she confidently boasted. "I'll make you fall beneath my feet, begging for mercy!"

With each and every thrust of the Lance, Tiamat desperately defended herself, shutting down Shalltear's attack with the golden transparent globe that was the only barrier between her and impending defeat.

'_God, my HP is already less than half...she's not giving me an opening either,' _Tiamat gritted her teeth.

If it wasn't for her enhanced physiology as a dragon, she would've broke down from the stress and blood-loss a long time ago.

The sound of metal squelching against meat resounded repeatedly, over and over without end.

But there was nothing Tiamat could do.

Just as Tiamat was about to cast another『Aegis』, Shalltear stabbed her in the throat to stop her from speaking. She choked on her own blood.

Shalltear was ecstatic as she saw the『Bleeding』status reapply itself, making the Dragoness HP plummet faster.

'_Just a bit more…! A bit more until her HP is gone!_'

"Look at you, My Lady! Your HP is almost gone at this point," Shalltear kicked Tiamat to the ground.

The Dragoness couldn't even reply to Shalltear's mockery.

Her HP was at the lowest it had ever been in any PvP. She never thought that losing HP would hurt so much. Hell, she didn't even have the strength to stand; her energy had completely run dry.

"Indeed, you are the Weakest Dragon My Lady~!" Shalltear happily quipped. "Sayonara~!"

With this one last attack, the Dragoness would be done for.

A sense of dread filled Tiamat as the Lance approached in slow motion. For all her bravado, she still feared death.

She closed her eyes, accepting her fate.

'_I'm sorry Momonga, guess you were right, huh? Just as always…._'

Shalltear was gloating again, she dimly realized. Her senses and body had stopped responding to her a while ago.

She slowly sank into unconsciousness.

There was no feeling of anxiety, there was no need to breath, no cause for alarm, no pain of any kind. She felt _peaceful_.

'**MASTER**!'

A roar filled her head, shocking her awake. Tiamat blearily blinked. In the sky, a shadow appeared over them.

Just as the Spuit Lance was about to land for the last time, a presence appeared above Shalltear with a hostility too intense for her to ignore.

Shalltear averted her eyes from Tiamat to see who the enemy was.

Tiamat coughed, her voice straining, "True, I really might be the weakest dragon, but..." she pointed up.

"He isn't."

Shalltear turned back to Tiamat with a snarl on her face that morphed into horror, as the Dragoness coughed out,『Holy Awe』, stunning Shalltear one more time, rendering her incapable of moving.

'_A distraction!_' Shalltear realized.

With the Vampire being 『Stunned』 for a few seconds, Tiamat and Pentakrisis had enough time to get into position.

The sound of a mountain slamming into the ground shook the ruined forest as gleaming white claws trapped Shalltear in their grasp.

Pentakrisis brought the furious Vampire up to his mouth, and fired his 『Overloaded Dragon's Breath』 towards the Vampire. A beam of blue-white consumed the Crimson Valkyrie and her prey.

Shalltear gritted her teeth as she felt her flesh bursting apart until the beam finally ceased.

"A-Plus for effort My Lady, but I'm afraid that's not enough!"

'_More Taki...Hotter...!'_

Pentakrisis took a deep breath as the damned Bloody chibi tried to escape from his grip.

Shalltear's screams filled the air as another torrent of pure hot blue washed over her.

"**ENOUGH!**"

Spuit Lance rushed downwards with ungodly speed.

The Dragoness raised her hand as her flickering mana once again formed the head of a fearsome dragon. She had finally accumulated enough damage again.

Shalltear's eyes lit up in desperate realization, and her efforts to escape the dragon's clutches grew even more desperate.

"...Ahhh, ah, ahhhhhh—" Shalltear's voice was bordering on the cusp of hysteria, "Y-You're insane, your pet is going to die too!"

Tiamat choked out, "『Divine Favor: Walls of Uruk』."

'_Now!'_

"『World Eater: Disgorge』!"

The world stopped existing; Shalltear had completely lost all sense of where she was. She was totally alone and the only thing that existed was the vortex rushing towards her.

She knew exactly where the flames were coming from, yet she could not evade it.

Then it began.

The air around her thickened with heat, filling her lungs with pure fire.

She felt a searing trail of flames coiling around her entire being.

A barrage of her own lance thrusts poked holes throughout her entire body, hurting more than she could have ever imagined as a serpent of pain consumed her insides.

The amalgamation of Shalltear's own attacks that Tiamat had received and Pentakrisis's blue flames caused her body to gradually crumble to dust. Her burned and fleshless hands dropped Spuit Lance, the weapon clattering to the ground. Her face was shriveled up from the all-consuming heat, and all she could see beyond the raging tongues of fire, was a bloodied Goddess and a pure white Dragon.

Her throat had long dried up, making it difficult for her to speak. But still, there was one thing that Shalltear Bloodfallen had to say.

"That's just like you to protect your Dragon. Truly you are the most terrifying of all, arinsu..."

That was Shalltear's sincere respect towards the almighty one that she had belittled and disgraced. One of those who had chose to stay behind.

The heatwave finally burned her away, and even if she couldn't move, she somehow felt _free_.

In the end, Shalltear smiled. _'Goddess of Dragons, huh? Not bad…'_

Satisfied, Shalltear vanished in a world of blue.

(;﹏;)

The Dragoness painfully pushed herself to her feet once she confirmed that Shalltear was indeed gone.

She slowly hobbled over to Pentakrisis while grimacing in pain, and saw nothing but the ashes of her remains.

She felt like vomiting.

Collapsing where the remains of Shalltear lay, Tiamat felt the strong urge to vomit.

Her heart ached, and sje felt like she had been through hell and back. This was by far the worst thing she had ever experienced. The feeling was so unbelievably, insurmountably powerful that it truly did feel physical.

It was a degree of suffering that was impossible to grasp without experiencing it first hand.

And she knew exactly what it was.

_Grief_.

She sobbed uncontrollably.

With the adrenaline of battle wearing off, she let out all the tears that she had been holding back.

Even screaming wouldn't be enough to get rid of the terrible feeling.

Nothing felt right as the full realization of what she had lost washed over her.

Pentakrisis felt it too, the overwhelming feeling that overflowed into their mental link, a sensation that made him feel numb and weary.

All he could do was to curl his tail around her in an effort to protect her from further threats.

But soon the feelings he felt changed.

Tiamat's field of vision was tinged with red, and she saw things through a pink haze as blood rushed to her head.

'_It's their fault,' _she realized. The only country who had information on the magic of YGGDRASIL must have known about World Items as well.

All of this energy had to be spent somehow, or she felt like she might explode. It was like trying to hold back an evergrowing tsunami.

Everytime she exercised patience, the water receded a bit more.

Every time she pushed down frustration, she saw a little bit more sand,

And in a perfect storm of events the water pulled back further, and further, and further, until it had formed a wave of rage that blocked out the sun.

It overwhelmed her and for an instant, the rush of the terrible feeling felt so _good_.

She spread her wings and let the rage took over.

(;﹏;)

"Lady. Tiamat. Has. Won. The. Battle."

Cocytus didn't even realize that those words had slipped out from his mouth.

Naturally, Albedo who was convinced from the beginning that her master would win, sighed in content, as if a huge burden had been lifted off her shoulders.

The twins who had only watched the last half of the fight almost cried when they saw the state their Lady was in, their tears only held back by their pride as Floor Guardians before Lord Ainz.

The last second before Tiamat's dragon had arrived, Ainz had thundered at Albedo to open the teleportation channels before it was too late, but seeing how the battle had turned out, the Overlord could now breathe in relief.

Not that he needed to breath anyways.

Demiurge, the sole logical Floor Guardian, needed more information to make sense of the situation, and so he voiced the doubt in his heart.

"Who let Lady Tiamat's summon out of the Sixth Floor?"

"I did," Albedo answered resolutely, the tightened clasp of her hands around each other the only sign of her nervousness.

"I see. So that's how it was," Demiurge turned around and began walking away before stopping, "Be careful, because next time, we might not be so fortunate."

Albedo just smiled in reply.

Mare smiled happily at the monitor, the fear that was constricting his heart having vanished.

Even though the twins had only watched the latter part of the battle, they could say for certain that it was the most intense battle they had ever seen. If Pentakrisis wasn't there, who knew what would have happened to Lady Tiamat.

"I am sure Lord Ainz will come up with a punishment for your insolence. You were acting too emotional as the Overseer, Albedo," the demon pushed up his glasses.

He knew that Lady Tiamat had survived merely because of pure _luck_. If the summon did not arrive on time, Nazarick would have lost two of its most valuable people.

The Overseer of the Guardians of Nazarick, and their Goddess of Dragons.

Demiurge looked at Albedo with his sharp gemstone eyes. Even he was shocked to hear Lord Ainz threatening to relieve Albedo of her duties because of this incident. This just proved how valuable the Goddess was to Nazarick.

Albedo looked down, and in a fit of shame she softly replied, "As her subject, there is nothing I can do but to deliver her wishes."

"There are limits to what wishes you can grant the Supreme Beings. I understand the need to fulfill all of their wishes, as that is our reason for being. But the way you did it was undeniably, overwhelmingly, and blatantly stupid."

"As. A. Fellow. Floor. Guardian. It. Seems. That. Demiurge. Is. Quite. Right. You. Are. Acting. More. On. Your. Feelings. Instead. Of. Thinking. Things. Through." Even Cocytus chided the Succubus.

However, Demiurge was far from finished.

"Lady Tiamat mentioned how important Lord Ainz is to Nazarick, a fact that all of us are already aware of. However, Lady Tiamat is also important within Nazarick. And that is a fact that you _failed_ to remind her of."

At his words, Ainz nodded. "Well put, Demiurge."

"B-But…" Albedo stuttered trying to justify herself in this situation. But she knew well enough that she had indeed made an almost tragic mistake.

The twins watched the scene in front of them with a smile.

As long as nothing happened to their Lady.

However, from the corner of his eyes, Mare caught his Lady spreading her wings and leaving the battlefield.

"L-Lord Ainz, it seems that L-Lady Tiamat is going back."

Ainz returned his attention to the monitor and saw that no one was there except for Pentakrisis who shortly disappeared, in pursuit of his master.

He considered what he was seeing.

Shalltear's equipment was still lying there on the ashes, and even if Tiamat was going to return to Nazarick, why didn't she use『Gate』 instead?

He once again controlled the camera to track where Tiamat was, and when he saw the direction of where she was going, his red orbs flared in shock, turning into small fires in his eye sockets.

'_She's heading towards the Slane Theocracy…!_'

Immediately he gave his orders to the Floor Guardians.

"Albedo, now that the battle is over, please『Message』 Aureole to open the Teleportation network. Demiurge and Cocytus, you two contact Pandora's Actor and bring whatever is necessary for Shalltear's resurrection to the Throne Room," Ainz's finger tapped against the table, "Amd bring 『Avarice and Generosity』 as well as 『Depiction of Nature and Society』for the twins. Aura, Mare, fetch Shalltear's equipment. I am going to personally bring Tiamat back to Nazarick!"

Moved by those words, the Guardians lowered their heads and in response, they simultaneously replied.

"Understood!" Ainz nodded.

He had to go before she did something stupid once again.

(;﹏;)

The Slane Theocracy was a human nation of the New World and one of the three human nations neighbouring Nazarick. A religious country that worshipped the Six Great Gods and was considered the strongest human nation in the region.

A rich country with six hundred years of history that divided itself into six different religious sects, each with its own specialized agency who all had their own area of expertise.

A state that had a civilization so advanced that it was said to be an entire era ahead of any of the neighbouring countries that surrounded it.

However, even they could not see the single dot in the sky furiously glaring at them from above.

If they had paid enough attention, or perhaps if they had a telescope and pointed it at the sky, they could have seen a humanoid figure looming over the centre of the country, right above the biggest building they had.

Her red hair was whipped to the side by the wind, and despite the harshness of the howling gust, her wings held her in place, unmoving.

Amethyst eyes that were meant to convey warmth were unbearably cold and unforgiving. Her teeth gritted at the sight below her.

Just like fear, anger was an emotion suited for survival. But while fear saved through avoidance, anger saved through the destruction of the threat.

One first tries to have a deterring effect, and failing that, moves to aggression.

The volcano of compressed anger was about to erupt, and someone had to _suffer_.

Her heart pounded as her head ran through hundreds of hateful retorts, looking for the most potent one. The thump of her heart whispered for her to take vengeance.

'_They were the ones who did __**that**__ to Shalltear._'

She clenched her teeth to keep her mouth shut and was shaking from the force it took to restrain her own muscles as she justified her behavior .

'_Her blood is on your hands because of them. Kill them, what are you waiting for?_'

Her heart whispered seductively in her ears and every muscle in her body tightened up at the very thought.

'_**DESTROY THEM!**_'

And so she did.

The first attack landed in just a few seconds.

Loud explosions, air bursting, rumbling, hissing, and the roaring of falling monoliths sang in her ears as ethereal meteorites erupted into firestorms on the largest temple of the Slane Theocracy.

Sadly, she didn't have enough mana to bring down the whole country, so the biggest building would have to do.

To those who survived the incident, it was a vision of Hell itself.

Clouds of ash were flung to the sky as chunks of molten lava the size of carriages came crashing down. Rocks collapsed on the building, and the people inside choked on the heat.

As she was about to swoop down to personally end each and every one of them, she could feel a hand pulling her back. Tiamat spun around with a snarl.

Ainz had stopped her from going rampant.

Her feral features shocked Ainz to the core. There was no remnant of the kind friend or the lovely baker he was used to seeing.

All he could see were her bloodshot eyes, filled with hatred.

"Let. Me. Go." She demanded.

How could he stop her? He should be supporting her; they were the ones who hurt Shalltear.

However, the reply she got from the Overlord was firm and unyielding.

"No."

She gritted her teeth, getting angrier by the second.

"Why are you protecting them? They were the one who did this to Shalltear, they—"

"You don't know that," Ainz replied calmly.

Just like a child throwing a tantrum, Tiamat screamed at Ainz, "They did! They're the only country who knows about YGGDRASIL magic, so it must be them!"

"No, every mage in E-Rantel can use YGGDRASIL magic. You would have noticed if you paid attention. But you didn't, as always," he explained. "If that was the basis of your rage, then shouldn't you attack E-Rantel as well?"

Her eyes widened at his verbal blow.

It was obvious he knew the answer to that. Antonios, Borg, Paolo, and the innocent children…

Once he saw that she had calmed down, he pointed a finger at the view down below.

"Take a look at what you've done. Is this what you wanted?"

She still had not completely processed what Ainz had said, but she shifted her gaze to where his skeletal fingers were pointing

Several glowing large rocks were embedded in the ground, having already destroyed half of the building, with fires spreading out even further. Smoke was pouring out, but even if she didn't recall summoning so many flames, it was clear that there was a raging fire going on.

Through her sharp eyes, she could see a number of people jump to their deaths from the devastated uppermost level of the temple, desperate to get away from the heat.

Her mind could not comprehend what was happening—her brain almost in an overloaded state.

She saw it with her eyes, but she was somehow mentally detached from it at the same time.

"I-I did that…?" she lamely questioned Ainz.

Then she saw a child.

Just one.

Crying over a dead body that was stuck under a large rock; it seemed as if the person had threw the child away, taking the hit instead.

The wailing of that particular child would haunt her forever.

Her nose, blocked by her own snot. Her eyes, puffy and red from crying. Her voice, small and cracking from screaming for help.

As turmoil roiled in Tiamat's heart, Ainz calmly replied.

"Yes."

Her mouth opened wide in shock as the reality of her actions suddenly slammed into her.

She looked down and realized that the red stuff spurting out was blood, and she had to do something. Anything.

She dived down, only to be pulled away by Ainz.

"Let me go…" this time she said those words softly, as tears started to edge out of the corners of her eyes.

She couldn't believe she had made an orphan out of that child.

"_Please_."

Ainz sighed, "There's no use crying over spilled milk."

Her anger died down, only to be replaced by an ineffable sorrow. Where smoldering fury once existed, a rainstorm of misery took its place.

The small, but stabbing feeling settled in her chest as she kept thinking about what she had done. She felt as if she was burning. She deserved it.

Her lungs burned, her chest felt like it was full of hellfire, and her throat was drier than the wastelands outside the Domes on Earth. She couldn't scream even if she tried.

All she could do was weep for the small girl who would now suffer because of her stupidity.

Ainz's non-existent heart ached at the sight.

When the two of them were given a chance to _continue_, this was the last thing he would ever have thought of. The very sight of her tearing up was something he could not deal with.

Not once had he ever seen her cry before back on Earth. She had always dealt with everything with a smile on her face. It seemed that she had cried more in the New World than back on Earth.

He felt like a failure for allowing all of this to happen.

All he could do was embrace her and hope that everything would be better.

She stiffened for a fleeting moment before melting down and sinking into his chest as he circled his arms around her. He was completely taken by surprise at how frail and small she was.

Back on Earth, she was taller, older, wiser. But here he was so much taller than her, almost looming over her. Just when had she become so small, so vulnerable? And so he couldn't help but to gently stroke her head.

"Let's go home," he finally said, his voice soft and sad.

He could feel her nodding beneath his cloak.

And just like that, the two Supreme Beings disappeared from the sky above the Slane Theocracy while mass panic ensued down below as the citizens tried to put out the divine flames.

All that could be heard were screams of loss and pain.

(;﹏;)

**Hackslashbash: No one:**

**Tiamat: Nukes a city.**

**Ainz: You have become the very thing you swore to destroy!**

**A/N: It was just one building lololol. Whaaaaaatttt? (You never played Tuber Simulator could be heard from a distance) Tiamat won? How? This is how. **_**For now…**_

**HETEROMORPHIC RACE: DRAGON**

**TIAMAT**

**Title: **

The Weakest Dragon in Yggdrasil

The Goddess of Dragons

**Job: **

One of the Almighty 41 Supreme Beings

World Guardian

World Eater

**Residence: **

Great Tomb of Nazarick

Floor 9

**Alignment: True Neutral**

**Karma: 0**

**Racial Level: 60**

Dragonling(10)

Young Dragon (10)

Adult Dragon (10)

Old Dragon Lord (10)

Elder Dragon Lord(5)

Ancient Dragon Lord (5)

Primordial Dragon Lord(5)

God Beast (5)*

**Job Class: 40 (41*chapter 13) **

Cleric(10)

High Priestess(5)

Dragon Saintess(5)

Ascended Guardian (10)

World Guardian (5)

World Eater (5)

Cook(1) *(As of chapter 13)

HP Exceeds Limits

MP 90

PHY. ATK 35

PHY. DEF 100 [Exceeds Limits with World Guardian]

Agility 45

MAG. ATK 55

MAG. DEF 100 [Exceeds Limits with World Guardian]

Resistance 100

Special 80

Total 705+

**Skills:**

**Passive:**

『Cooking』

You can cook and make something to eat. It may not be edible

Bonus 80% chance of success to all food items you make

『High-Tier Physical Immunity V』

Nullifies physical attacks below level 80.

『High-Tier Magical Immunity V』

Nullifies all spells tier 8 and below.

『Phobos Ambience』

A passive aura that increases the user's hate values, and forcing the enemy to attack the wielder rather than another target.

『World Eater: Devour』

Passively stockpiles damage from attacks in order to release them with『World Eater: Disgorge』.

**Active:**

『Dragon's Breath』(MAX)

Shoots a giant gout of dragon-flame that devours all in its path. Tier and damage increases the more draconic racial levels one has. High chance of inflicting the『Heavy Burn』debuff. The『Overloaded』modifier greatly increases damage, range, and burn duration in exchange for a longer cooldown time.

Damage, range, and effects increase with more dragon racial classes or other special classes.

Range - 250 meters (Increases by 10 meters for each 10 Mana spent up to 1 Kilometer)

『Censure of Vritra』

A Dragon Saintess skill. Inflicts heal block and increased weakness to fire damage for a limited amount of time. This skill cannot be stacked.

『Dragon Saintess Summon』

Summons a high tier angelic or draconic being from ambient mana. Limited to once a day.

『Divine Favor: Light of Regeneration』

God Beast skill that drastically increases regeneration for one summon or moderately for a large number of summons.

『Divine Favor: Light of Vigor』

God Beast skill that drastically increases max health for one summon or moderately for a large number of summons.

『Divine Favor: Feral Impulse』

God Beast skill that drastically increases attack for one summon or moderately for a large number of summons. Cripples target's magic casting ability.

『Divine Favor: Breath of the Zephyr』

God Beast skill that drastically increases speed for one summon or moderately for a large number of summons.

『Divine Favor: Walls of Uruk』

God Beast skill that drastically increases defense for one summon or moderately for a large number of summons.

『Flying』

User takes to the skies with wings.

『World Eater: Disgorge』

Returns attacks absorbed with 『World Eater: Devour』with damage equal to the original damage of the attacks plus the user's physical and magical attack stats. The user must receive a certain amount of damage before they can activate this skill.

『World Eater: Maw of the Void』

A skill exclusive to the World Eater class that allows one to consume spells up to the 10th-tier and below three times a day. The user recovers Mana equivalent to the cost of the consumed spell. Super Tier Spells cannot be consumed with this skill.

『World Eater: Reality Cruncher』

A joke skill made by the shitty devs, yet is still an effective attack nonetheless. Damage is determined by the player's mouth characteristics. For example, a dragon heteromorph who has not altered their mouth shape would deal far more damage than a human would as a result of a stronger bite.

Regardless of the user's stats, Reality Cruncher always deals a base amount of true damage and has a 100% chance to inflict the debuffs 『Armor Break』,『Cripple』, and『Trauma』

Cannot be used in quick succession.

『Nidhogg's Descent』

Once per week ability. Large AOE attack that deals a percentage of true damage. Also deals a high amount of unpreventable burn damage and increases weaknesses to fire and demonic damage.

**Spells:**

_**MP cost goes from 1 for first-tier spells all the way up to 10. Metamagic increases cost regardless of tier.**_

**Metamagic:**

『Maximize』 - Improves Damage of spells.

『Greater Maximize』 - Stronger and costlier version of『Maximize』.

『Widen』- Increases the range of a spell's effect.

『Penetrate』- Increases the chances of a spell bypassing defenses.

『Boosted』- Raises a spell's tier by one.

**1st-Tier**

『Light Heal』

The ability to heal slight injuries.

**4th-Tier**

『Minor Flare』

Omni-directional fire spell that incapacitate those around it. Has a base radius of 1 meter and can be increased by 1 meter for each additional point of Mana up to 25. Moderate chance of inflicting the『Burn』Debuff.

**7th-Tier**

『Holy Awe』

Stunning the opponent for 3 seconds, more potent effect on targets with low karma.

『Full Cure』

Heals players from injuries, debuffs, and status ailments. Health recovered rises with karma

**8th-Tier**

『Firaga』

Inflict major Fire elemental damage on one enemy.

『Draconic Power』

Grants one the might and sturdiness of dragons. Overall stat buff.

**Super-Tier (With Item)**

『Plane of Nine Hells-Phlegethos』

Summons the fourth layer of the Nine Hells, a blazing desolation of fire and lava. It comes in two sets. One to decimate the entire place by slamming Abriymoch into the area, damaging 500 meters from its surrounding areas as well as increasing fire damage by 50% for all characters. Two, automatically casts boosted 『Lava Streams』 from the Pit of Flames targeting enemies (Range - 60 meters from the Pit of Flames)

**Status Effects:**

『Burn』

Afflicted target takes a set amount of fire damage per second.

『Cripple』

Afflicted target deals decreased physical damage.

『Trauma』

A stronger version of the 『Fear』debuff. Target also deals decreased magical damage and receives increased magical damage as a result.

『Armor Break』

Target's physical defense is decreased.


	17. Chapter 17: Ripples in a Volatile Pond

**Chapter 17: Ripples in a Volatile Pond**

* * *

As soon as they landed on the other side of the portal, Tiamat could see an enormous pile of YGGDRASIL coins on the grey ceramic floor and the dark purple carpet of the Throne Room with all the Floor Guardians waiting in front of it next to Ainz.

All but one.

Tiamat scowled at the thought.

Ainz regally made his way to his throne and Tiamat followed suit behind him.

"Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat, welcome back!" Aura greeted cheerfully.

Seeing her so bright brought a small smile to the Dragoness's face.

As usual, she opened her arms wide, preparing herself for the double impact of hugs from the twins.

"I'm home."

The instant she said those two words, as she expected, the twins came crashing into her, the entire force of them running towards her and jumping into her arms bringing her down to the floor.

"W-We were so worried My Lady!" Mare stammered, and Tiamat noticed that this was the first time he actually ran into her embrace when it was usually the other way around.

The very thought warmed her heart.

She petted the twins' heads lovingly.

"Sorry that I made you guys worry about me…" she looked up at all of the Floor Guardians who were present. "All of you."

Demiurge pushed up his glasses and with a confident smirk, he greeted her back.

"As expected of Lady Tiamat, your strength knows no bounds."

Cocytus huffed in agreement, "Indeed."

"Welcome back Lady Tiamat, but first, let's get your wounds treated. Your current HP is…" Albedo struggled to find the right words, "Concerning."

The moment Tiamat had entered Nazarick, Albedo could see that her HP was a mere sliver, red and beeping in urgency.

Pandora's Actor was the closest Floor Guardian from her, and with his gloved hands, he offered to help Tiamat get up from the ground.

Tiamat almost stared at the Dopleganger for more than she should have.

Even though she knew about Ainz's 'dark past', this was actually her first time meeting with Ainz's creation.

He was dressed in a yellow Neo-Nazi-esque style, obviously inspired by the German elite guards during the Euro-Arcology Wars twenty years ago. But what she noticed was that his egg-shaped head had no distinct facial features except three holes that made the shape of two eyes and a mouth.

"Meinde Dame, _it is very nice to finally meet you! The very sight of your face is just like an oasis in a desert!_"

At his use of German and over-exaggerated tone, Ainz groaned in humiliation as a green aura washed over him.

The other Floor Guardians looked at him as if he was spouting nonsense. To be honest, ever since Demiurge messaged him, he had been acting quirky all this time. Truly, nothing less than disrespectful behaviour towards the Supreme Beings.

They thought that the Dragoness would simply ignore the impudent egghead, but to their shock, the Dragoness answered him in the very same nonsense language.

"_You speak German?_"

"_You too _Meinde Dame? _How unexpected!_"

"_Ainz inputted German into you? _Momo-chan never told me anything about that..."

The two continued to enthusiastically converse in a language only they understood.

Not expecting this outcome, each and every one of the present Floor Guardians' eyes boggled in disbelief. That included Ainz who didn't even have eyes.

"My Lady, you…" Albedo stared at Tiamat in disbelief, "You understand him?"

"It was the first language that I learned," Tiamat replied tiredly, as the toll of the battle suddenly made itself known.

Hannah Annafelowz's father was German, so the language had been deeply ingrained in her brain. But with the loss of her parents, she never thought she would be able to communicate in German ever again.

And so the very thought of conversing in her home language filled her heart in ways she could never have imagined.

"_It's been so long since I talked using this language…_" she mentioned somberly to Pandora's Actor.

"_Then, it will be my pleasure to converse with you anytime of the day, _Meinde Dame." he swiftly replied, bowing as he did so.

Tiamat weakly smiled at Pandora's Actor, "_I'll take you up on that offer_."

Ainz cleared his throat.

"That is enough, Pandora's Actor, please give Tiamat the potion you brought from the treasury."

Pandora's Actor flailed, as if he was just reminded of the fact and rummaged through his pockets to give his Lady a blood red vial that she took with a thankful smile before chugging it down.

When she downed the entire bottle, she felt like she had tapped a hidden spring in the earth and was extracting life-giving water from it. It let her restore her vitality; her body was the cup and the potion filled her.

Even though she knew that small vial of potion was not enough to revitalize her, she felt rejuvenated nevertheless.

Returning the empty vial to Pandora, she said softly, "Thank you," before walking back to Ainz's left side.

The twins guided her to where she was supposed to be standing, holding out their hand as Tiamat took Aura in her left and Mare in her right as they helped her climb the steps to the throne.

It was as if they feared she would fall down and faint.

Regardless, they were trying to help, and no matter how small their assistance, she would gratefully thank them.

Ainz reached out his hand and helped her to where he once she was near and then guided her to his left side.

Tiamat let out a small snicker.

"What is it?"

"No," she dismissed his question, "I can still walk you know."

"Your HP and MP are in critical condition, and you look like you're going to keel over any time now," Ainz explained matter-of-factly, the truth of his statements putting a wry smile on Tiamat's face.

She looked tired. Her eyelids looked as if they were about to close any minute now, and he assumed that her stamina must have been gone after such a long fight. She looked pale, incredibly pale, and the whiteness of her skin only served to contrast with the caked blood that was on it.

Her clothes were tattered and covered with holes. But, Ainz noticed something much more apparent.

The gap on her throat that was slowly closing up.

He winced while looking at the wound, remembering the scene from the monitor earlier.

"You can go back to your room to rest if you want to."

The Goddess shook her head. "I want to see whether the resurrection works."

Ainz grunted in displeasure at the thought, "If the resurrection is not possible, then what are we supposed to do?"

"There's always 『Soul of Yggdrasil』," she suggested.

Ainz looked at her in shock.

Using『Soul of Yggdrasil』 meant that Tiamat would bind her HP to Shalltear's, and as a result, any damage Shalltear might receive would be redirected to Tiamat. The skill was capable of resurrecting even people permanently killed by World Items, but with a stiff penalty of forcing the two players to share the HP bar of the resurrector, therefore making it impossible for both to ever leave Nazarick at the same time if they wished to avoid putting themselves in significant risk.

"Does that mean you'll allow yourself to be bound to Nazarick?" Ainz asked her to make sure she was certain in her decision.

With the way skills and spells in the New World were functioning, there is a huge possibility that the spell would be applicable the same way as it was in YGGDRASIL, but Ainz had to be sure.

"If it comes to that, then I don't mind."

"Ever though you will have to split your HP pool with Shalltear forever?" Ainz stressed.

Tiamat looked at Ainz and gave him a warm smile. "Then it will be a blissful forever."

Because she knew this way Shalltear would be much more protected against those who wanted to mind control her, and with the『Soul of Yggdrasil』in place, Shalltear would be buffed against World Class Items as well.

"I see," was his only reply.

In his heart, he apologized to Tiamat for letting this happen. He had personally witnessed what she did and it filled him with guilt.

She was ready to give everything to him, to Nazarick, even at the cost of her own life.

But it was him who wasn't ready to let her go.

Noticing his silence, Tiamat decided to speak up. "Shall we?"

"Then Albedo, pay close attention to Shalltear's name. If she remains mind-controlled as before…"

However, before Albedo could carry along his wishes, Demiurge stepped in.

"Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat. Though I might be overstepping my boundaries, I propose that you two will allow us to deal with Shalltear ourselves."

All the Floor Guardians present agreed with Demiurge's words, nodding as he said so.

He could see it, their resolve.

Even Tiamat was shocked at the sentence.

"Demiurge…" the Goddess raised her voice, however, Demiurge continued.

"We are fully aware that your orders are to be respected above all else. We will grind ourselves to dust in order to obey them. However, as your loyal servants, we cannot allow the Supreme Beings to be placed into danger once again."

Demiurge's gaze shifted to Tiamat.

She flinched at the slight jab. "S-Sorry…"

"You don't have to apologize, My Lady," Albedo answered. "This is our job as the Guardians of Nazarick. If Shalltear betrays us once more then we will eliminate her and we pray that the both of you watch us do so."

Both Ainz and Tiamat understood the Guardians' intentions, but still Tiamat's offer furthered their resistances. As she was about to object, Ainz interrupted her.

"I understand. If Shalltear betrays us once more, you may deal with her as you see fit."

The Guardians nodded in acknowledgement.

"No, wait! I object!" Tiamat pointed her hand at Ainz. "The reason why I went in the first place was because I don't want to see the Guardians fight each other. If you agree to this then it defeats that purpose."

Ainz just looked at her calmly, calculatively, as if he knew that was what she was going to say.

"Have some faith. They are the Guardians of Ainz Ooal Gown, not mere children to coddle," Ainz said with a sense of finality, which brought confident smiles to the Guardians face. "Of course, that is only if there is another chance of this happening ever again. Which I personally will make sure it _won't._"

Tiamat looked at the sight before her.

The Floor Guardians smiled at her together with Ainz, as if to reassure her that she could trust them.

'_Truly, what a pathetic Supreme Being I am…_'

To think that she couldn't put her trust in them filled her with shame. After all, the root of all this foolishness was completely her fault.

If she had come up with a better plan, then all this worry, pain, and sadness wouldn't have happened.

Ainz held back a sigh when he saw the bitter expression on Tiamat's face as she stood to his side.

"All you have to do is stand by my side," Ainz raised his skeletal hand and brushed a stray bang away from her face. "Afterall, it would be very lonely existence to not have you around."

At his words, Tiamat relished the touch of her dear friend for as long as she could before he drifted back to sit on his throne. She wondered how skeletal fingers could feel so warm.

"That's right, My Lady. All you need to do is stand aside and watch. If you were to disappear, then I will stop the hugs and kisses!" Aura threatened her.

"M-Me too!" Mare stammered, following his sister's lead.

At this statement, the Dragoness started hyperventilating.

No.

No.

Nope.

They wouldn't...right?

The look on their faces gleamed with satisfaction at the ridiculously simple threat their Goddess was susceptible to.

In the end, the whole thing didn't make sense. Of course if the Goddess were to disappear, that would mean that Aura and Mare would have no one to hug.

But the very thought of the lack of the simple acts of affection from the twins had stopped her from thinking properly.

"That's right," Demiurge joined in, "I would add that if anything like this were to happen again, a permanent ban to the kitchen would be perfect."

The Demon was smiling coldly at her, looking pristine and absolutely untouchable while the Goddess gaped at him in disbelief at his suggestion.

Ainz cleared his throat, a knowing glint in his eyes at Demiurge's _perfect_ suggestion, and said, "Good idea, Demiurge."

Demiurge gave an uncharacteristic smile as he bowed at the compliment. "I live to serve."

"You guys are meanies…" The Dragoness's cheeks puffed at the unfairness of the situation.

"That's what you get for being such an idiot," Ainz poked her forehead with his bony fingers. "Now, shall we start?"

"Yes!" The spirited replies of the Guardians washed over Ainz and Tiamat, and Ainz grabbed the staff of Ainz Ooal Gown that floated in the air beside him, turning towards the floating mountains of gold in the corner of the room.

The cost of resurrecting a level 100 Floor Guardian was five hundred million gold coins.

She saw the mountains of gold change shape, from heavy solids to a viscous liquid.

The molten gold formed a river which flowed under the huge chandelier. It compacted and shrank, slowly taking a sleeping humanoid shape as its golden glow gradually weakened.

Once the gentle shine vanished, waxy skin and pink hair emerged. There was no doubt to anyone in the room that it was the figure of Shalltear Bloodfallen.

"What's her status Albedo?" Ainz calmly asked the Overseer of Nazarick, tension simmering underneath his inscrutable persona.

"Please be at ease. It seems that the mind control has been terminated."

Tiamat unconsciously clutched her chest in response as a powerful sense of relief flooded into her, almost causing her to weep at the welcome news. Albedo, who was looking at the Supreme Beings smiled, relief evident on her features.

Ainz reached into his pocket dimension and retrieved a black cloak before throwing it over Shalltear's naked form.

But something was unusual—

Her eyes were tightly shut, and her chest was not moving. She laid quietly on the ground like a corpse.

When she was resurrected, Tiamat expected to see the exuberant, cheery, perverted Shalltear.

That was why she was the first one to approach Shalltear, feeling somewhat helpless as countless thoughts ran across her mind, limply walking down the steps.

'_What if the resurrection didn't work?_' was the one thought that rang clearly in her head, like a bell atop a silent hill.

Tears slowly pricked at her eyes as she kneeled down onto the gray marbled floor of the Throne Room. It was much more different than seeing her through the adrenaline-veiled eyes focusing in battle. She remembered that she had hurt Shalltear; she watched as her divine flames slowly burned her. She knew what she had done, but she had not—

She hadn't truly let it sink in.

She bit down hard on her lip to keep from crying out as guilt and regret filled her being. Beautiful Shalltear, who was so full of life, laid still and pale. Guilt briefly made her waver, but the emotion was soon burned away within her.

Guilt she could take, afterall, it was her who committed the act.

Pain, though?

She will let that pain burn for all eternity for those who did this to Shalltear.

The Dragon inside her laughed happily at the thought.

As Tiamat stroked the head of the still corpse, Shalltear's crimson eyes opened and sensing someone's presence nearby, she looked around in a sleepy manner before finally resting her gaze on the red Goddess.

"Lady Tiamat?"

She sounded groggy, as if she had just woken up from a deep slumber, but Tiamat could hear it, the familiar voice of Shalltear, the loyalty in her voice. Even if Albedo and Ainz had confirmed her allegiance, she was delighted to confirm it with her own ears, and she hugged Shalltear with all her might.

"Uh, ueeh?!"

"Welcome back, Shalltear!"

"Eh? Ah, I'm not sure what happened, but did I go somewhere My Lady?"

"Yes you did. Far, far away..." the Goddess whispered, her eyes glued to Shalltear's confused face.

But Shalltear disregarded what the Goddess had said and eagerly returned the hug. Tiamat could feel two ice-cold hands returning the embrace. If she had paid close attention, she would immediately have nudged away the hand that was trying to grope her.

"Ah~ I dreamed about having you this close My Lady."

Almost immediately Tiamat was pulled away by Aura and Mare.

"Don't you know what you did? How could you say something like that?!"Aura immediately chastised Shalltear on everyone's behalf and Shalltear's shoulders trembled in fright.

While Mare was taking her back to the left side of the Throne, Tiamat looked back at Shalltear with a confused face.

Albedo immediately followed Aura, "Do you even know the situation you were in until now?!"

Demiurge walked towards Shalltear with his brows furrowed, "Oh, so you don't remember? Your actions were the worst blunders a Floor Guardian could ever make!"

Shalltear was shocked looking at Demiurge's enraged face, afterall, it was very rare for the Demon to raise his voice. Moreover, who was that egghead standing besides the Pleiades?!

Totally confused with what was going on, she could only reply incoherently.

"Wh-What?"

Aura sighed, pointing her finger at Shalltear, "Listen here you dumdum! You did something unforgivable to Lady Tiamat you idiot!"

"Huh?!"

"Do you even understand the meaning of your existence as a Floor Guardian?" Demiurge quickly followed up.

Even Cocytus joined in, "Lady. Tiamat. Went. Through. So. Much. Hardship."

"I-I agree!" Mare said out of nowhere.

"This is why you don't drown in your own desires!"

Ainz and Tiamat just watched as Shalltear began tearing up from Aura's one-sided torrent of abuse.

Somehow, Ainz saw Bukubukuchagama scolding Peroroncino, and the rest of his guildmates smiling at the endearing sight.

He slowly reached a hand out to them and stopped mid-air, looking down as a sense of loneliness filled his heart.

His undead nature couldn't suppress the feeling of emptiness.

He knew that the Guardians and him could never step on the same plane as him and his guildmates. Theirs was a form of awe, not the warmth he had felt with his friends.

Just as he was about to drop his hand in resigned despair, a warm hand reached out and grasped his own.

"What's wrong?" Tiamat worriedly asked.

'_Ah, that's right,_' he realized.

Tiamat looked at the hand Ainz had raised and naively wrapped his hand around hers. All without a single moment of hesitation.

It was then he realized; he was never truly alone. She was always there beside him, through thick and thin. How could he be so blind?

Even though he knew that his emotional suppressor would activate soon enough, he couldn't deny that when she took his hand, he felt happy. It was something that a million words couldn't describe, a bond of unspoken closeness and reassurance.

There were countless untold emotions that flowed through him from that simple touch.

It was a connection that one had to feel for themselves in order to understand it.

He was always the one reaching out and every time, she was the only one who took his hand, while lowering her eyes softly and smiling at him warmly.

How could he even say that he was lonely with her around?

"—Ha, hahaha!"

Ainz could not keep the laughter from escaping his mouth despite the baffled looks from the Guardians around him. No, he knew that laughter did not just come from his mouth, but from his heart.

After he was satisfied, Ainz silently turned back to Tiamat, remembering what she had said earlier.

'_A blissful forever, huh?_'

Perhaps with her it might be possible.

(＾Ｏ＾)

They were probably discussing some national secret behind the doors of the meeting room where he just left.

But that was none of his business.

With that being said, he had more work to do. He sighed, brushing back his hair.

He was merely giving reports before, but now as the First Seat of the Black Scripture—as its leader—he had to fulfill his responsibilities. Which included resurrecting his dead comrades, picking temporary replacements for their positions, as well as their training, conducting experiments, and so on.

After all, the Six Scriptures were a secret organization, even from the Slane Theocracy itself.

Moreover, because of the damned Red Demon's attack he had just reported, his demands had piled up even further, leaving him with hardly any free time.

"Still, I was hoping I could relax for today."

After being liberated from the meeting with the Cardinals, a gathering of the highest officials in the Slane Theocracy, he worked his shoulders tiredly before his attention was drawn by a familiar _clack-clack-clack_ sound.

He knew where came from. There were very few in the Theocracy that were permitted to enter this place, and when he thought about the people who were not present within the meeting room, the answer immediately came to mind.

And as he expected, a girl was leaning against a wall.

She had a unique hairstyle, with the left side being a different color from the right. One was a scintillating silver, while the other was an all consuming black. The color of her eyes were similarly mismatched.

Beside her was her trustworthy scythe that rested against the wall.

Her appearance looked youthful, but her age did not correspond to her looks at all. Ever since he had become the leader of the Black Scripture, the girl's look had not changed a bit.

He turned his eyes to the long ears; even with her long hair, she was unable to hide her half-elf status. He quickly chided himself after he remembered just how much the girl hated people looking at her ears.

The sound he heard came from the toy in her hands. In the Slane Theocracy, it was called a "Rubik's Cube," and it had apparently been handed down from the Six Great Gods.

"Getting one side is simple enough, but getting two is hard," her voice blended together with the clack of the cube's motion.

It was not difficult for him, but he had no idea if he should tell her that. In the end, he chose to smile bitterly by way of response. The girl didn't even look away from her game and nonchalantly continued.

"I've heard of what happened. The Cardinals showed up for such simple matters?"

"It wasn't just _that_ incident," he was referring to the incident where a building in the Theocracy was burned to the ground in everlasting flames. In the end, magic casters was sent to eradicate the flames before it could grow even further. "You were given a copy of the report, right?"

"Didn't read it," she replied without any hesitation. "Asking someone who knows is faster. Did something happen?"

Wanting to sigh for the umpteenth time in the day, he started his report from the beginning again.

"We engaged a mysterious undead creature that resembled a Vampire. There were two dead, and one severely wounded, so we fell back."

"Who died?" finally, she looked away the toy in her hand. But there was no trace of sorrow in her voice. It was as if she was asking what was for dessert.

Still he didn't mind. That was just how she was.

"Cedran, who was protecting Kaire-sama, and Beaumarchais, who tried to capture the unmoving Vampire."

"Great Wall and Divine Chains, huh. That reminds me, the Miko Princess of Earth died in a strange explosion recently, as well as the recent attack in the Theocracy. It seems that the country has lots of enemies," she grinned. "Who was wounded?"

"Kaire-sama. There seemed to be some sort of curse in effect preventing curative spells from healing her, so we fell back."

"And the Vampire?"

"We left it there. The Vampire entered an attack stance every time we tried to capture it or come close. We decided it that it would be wiser to leave it alone."

"But it was defeated, doesn't it?

"...Yes."

That was why he was in the meeting room earlier.

At first, the higher ups decided it was better to just leave the Vampire alone and then gather their forces to charge the Vampire while taking severe casualties. However, they did not take into account that the Adventurer Guild had stumbled upon said monster, and were even able to send people who were capable of defeating it.

When the Cardinals heard the news, they had decided to leave behind only the essential intelligence personnel and have everyone else retreat.

Before, he agreed with their judgement.

Afterall, the only people who could defeat the Vampire were probably God-kin or Dragon Lords was their reasoning at the time. That was why they could easily leave the Vampire alone, placing sentries in place, and if they found anyone who could defeat the Vampire, they would be on their guard against them.

But the Vampire was defeated.

The curve of her lips widened, a clear smile. She raised her head to look straight at him, and her mismatched eyes sparkled with chaotic glee.

"Did you found out who defeated the Vampire?"

"Yes. Since our sentries were all incinerated, we found out from rumors that two new Adamantine Adventurers had defeated the Vampire. The Dark Warrior, Momon, and the Silver Priestess, Hannah."

At those words, the girl smiled with curiosity, delight, and battle lust.

"Who do you think is stronger between the two of them?"

"I've heard of Momon's might and the Silver Priestess who had single handedly defeated the Pandemonium. But one cannot simply assess their strength through rumors alone."

"Then who is stronger? Them or me?"

He had expected that question.

"You, of course."

"Really?"

The girl's voice was filled with much interest, but her body language said otherwise. She looked back at her toy, having lost all interest in the topic.

He breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

"What a shame. I was thinking I might be able to taste defeat."

'_That's impossible,'_ the words were better left unsaid. Afterall, it was impossible to defeat _Certain Death_, the mightiest, never-defeated Extra Seat of the Slane Theocracy.

"So," she continued. "What about that attack?"

"Ah yes, the Crimson Massacre had taken less than fifty lives. It wasn't much, however, it did take the country by surprise. But in the end, Thousand Leagues Astrologer got a quick glimpse of the one who did it before her scrying went haywire."

"Interesting. So who was it who dared to attack the Slane Theocracy?"

"An entity known as the Red Demon. We believe that he was the one who conducted Crimson Massacre because the Vampire might have been his subordinate," he explained. "The death of his vassal might have caused him to take revenge."

A moment passed before he realized he had said the wrong thing.

Her pupils widened and her smile was even more sinister than it was before, clearly anticipating the answer to her question.

"A male monster?"

"Thousand Leagues Astrologer couldn't confirm that information," he swiftly replied.

Regardless of what his answer was, he knew that it was useless. She had already made up her mind, and so she placed her hand on her lower belly with a smile.

"Ah, finally! I don't care if he looks ugly or has a bad personality, but if this monster is able to defeat me, I will gladly bear our child!"

He paid no heed to what she said, and instead continue on to his office. With a headache starting to grow, he was thinking on how to juggle his job between collecting information on the Red Demon, and starting to recruit people to subjugate it.

(＾Ｏ＾)

There was a slight change in the movement of the air before its nose, waking the Dragon whose alias was the Platinum Dragon Lord—Tsaindorcus Vaision—from his light slumber.

What filled its waking consciousness was the emotion of surprise. It would not have been a stretch to call it shock even.

In front of him, was an old human woman, standing proudly. She had evaded his keen senses and came all the way right underneath his nose, a mischievous smile spread over her age wrinkled face.

"It's been a while."

The Dragon did not answer.

Her white hair showed how long she had lived as a mortal, but her face overflowed with a childish vibrance that did not match her years.

He compared how she was now to how she had been in his memories.

"What's this? Can't even spare a greeting for an old friend? Oh my, to think that even Dragons could go senile," the woman teased relentlessly.

He snorted. To think that a Dragon would even tolerate this sort of attitude.

Truly, he was getting soft.

"Forgive me. Seeing an old friend moved me so much that I shuddered, so I was unable to speak for a moment."

It was hard to believe that such a gentle voice could come from such a massive frame. In contrast, the old lady's reply was exactly as he had expected, full of sarcasm.

"Old friend? My old friend is that empty suit of armor over there."

In the past, he had travelled with the old lady and her group by controlling an empty suit of armor as a substitute for himself. Therefore, when his true identity had come out, his companions had been furious about being tricked. The resentment from back then still hadn't died out and the old woman in front of him was still making digs at him now.

Although he hoped that she would give him a break, he didn't quite mind her wisecracking. He felt that being able to banter with an old friend like this was a joyous thing.

"I apologized 200 years ago, and as you might see, I can no longer travel with you in that body, you know."

The old lady looked up and gave him her familiar mischievous smile.

"So, you're still an adventurer now, aren't you?" he asked.

The old woman shook her head to the side and give him a shrug on the shoulder.

"I've retired. I let that girl Inberun take over for me," she smirked as if she was remembering something funny. "That crybaby. She went on and on and wouldn't stop, so I said if I can beat you then you have to listen to me, and then I smacked the crap out of her!"

The old woman laughed sinisterly from the bottom of her heart.

"You are the only human who could beat that girl."

"Well. I had friends helping me out. Not to mention, while that girl may be strong, there are those who are stronger. Like you, for example," a familiar glint shone in her eyes. "If you didn't limit yourself, you would be the most powerful being in this world."

The Dragon shifted his gaze to the suit of Platinum armor. The old woman expected that he would answer her in a casual manner, like he used to, but instead, his voice was grave.

"I don't know about that."

His guest turned back to where his armor was sitting, following his line of sight and was surprised by what she had witnessed.

There was a visible tear in his armor, like it had been pierced by something.

"That enemy wasn't on the side of this world like Leader was?"

"It might be just an unfortunate encounter, but I felt that the Vampire was of an evil nature. Moreover..."

She carried the scent of a Dragon he did not recognize, was the sentence that he left unsaid.

"Vampire? Do you mean that Vampire who was found by a group of adventurers?" she asked.

"A group of adventurers found this Vampire?" he was shocked at the news. There was no way those adventurers would have survived.

"I heard the Vampire was defeated." she said in a much more serious tone, her voice no longer carried its previous lightness.

"Impossible."

"Yes. It was defeated by two adventurers."

"How?" he raised his body to a sitting position, shocked by the revelation.

How could mere mortals defeat such a strong monster?

"I don't know how, but the battlefield was scorched. It was so hot that even lava spouted from the ground, creating a volcanic mountain in its place," she told him, remembering what her subordinate had mentioned to her previously. "I also heard that one of those two adventurers had a Dragon companion."

The Dragon kept quiet, absorbing the information he had received. Perhaps the smell on the Vampire was because of the adventurer?

No.

He had went before the adventurers arrived, so it must have been a different Dragon.

"But that's not why I came here today," she said. "Mere gossip about who defeated what and how wouldn't help us anyways since none of those adventurers watched the battle. It was only the two of them. I came here because the power that polluted the world might have started moving once more."

The old lady looked into the distance with a pained expression on her face.

Recognizing that look, he asked, "What is it?"

"The Slane Theocracy was attacked this evening, the damage that this monster did…" she paused, gathering her words. "With one attack, this monster killed almost fifty people."

His breath hitched in his throat.

"Within the Theocracy? That's impossible."

The Slane Theocracy was heavily guarded, especially with the existence of the Black Scripture. No one would dare to attack the country blindly for fear of retribution.

"The country called the attack the Crimson Massacre because of the deep flame that burned the victims to ashes to the extent that it could only be stopped by mages. This is classified information, but they know who did it."

The Dragon stopped and listened intently for the words that would shake the World to its core.

"A monster known as the Red Demon."

(＾Ｏ＾)

Gazef was always tired after these meetings, filled with power plays and flattery, but he did not let his fatigue show on his face as he accompanied the King back to the Palace.

As they slowly walked down the corridor and neared his chambers, the King suddenly spoke to him.

"I apologize for not being able to protect you because of my lack of consideration. I could not even outfit you properly before giving you that dangerous command. Please forgive me for the lives of your men that were lost because of that…because of me."

"My King…"

"Gazef. Please," his voice was tired, so tired. "While I cannot make up for their deaths, I would like to give compensation to the families of the deceased. I also want to convey my gratitude to Hannah-dono, and thank her for saving my closest confidant."

He was troubled that the King would thank a nameless person, even if she did have personally aided him.

However, the fact remained that he promised in his heart that he would help her hide her identity.

"I believe that your sincere thoughts alone will be satisfaction enough," he tried to reassure his King.

He had heard of the tales detailing her exploits. First were the 'Tears' of the Sea' that she created, which had saved the lives of countless sailors on their travels. They had even become a famous dish within the castle.

The second time he had heard of her was when people talked of a single Priestess slaughtering a whole horde of monsters and single-handedly saving E-Rantel.

When the outrageous rumors had first made their way to his ears, his head cocked to the side because her description and the person he had seen in person did not match, the only thing that was the same were the same warm amethyst eyes.

He understood that she had her own reasons to hide her identity, which was why he respected her desire for privacy. Afterall, she had saved him. This was the least he could do.

The third time he had heard of her was of her generosity and kindness, healing each and every Adventurer after the horrible Pandemonium without receiving a single copper coin. Her kindness had earned her the moniker of 'The Saint of E-Rantel'.

He heard that the temples were enraged that she had basically ruined their business opportunities, but there was nothing they could do to the up and rising Adamantine Adventurer.

The last time he had heard of her was of her defeating a Vampire together with a Mythril ranked Adventurer, Dark Warrior Momon.

Messengers who ran letters and errands between countries usually made a detour to look at the battlefield and many weaved exaggerated tales about the scorching land of fire.

It seemed that she had created a name for herself, all while keeping herself humble and kind.

He smiled at the thought.

Out of habit, he rubbed his finger against his thumb, wanting to feel his sigil that he received from the King, but at the absence of it, he remembered that he had given it to her.

As they walked, two people came into view before the King's eyes. The one who caught his attention was the beautiful girl who walked in front. It was said that her loveliness was such that it could not be accurately reproduced in paintings; she was truly an indescribable beauty.

Sadly, he thought otherwise.

Afterall, he had met an unearthly beauty beyond compare.

Gazef smiled to greet the Princess in front of him as he saw the King visibly smiling. He knew the King had always favored his little Princess over his other children.

Renner Theire Chradelon Ryle Vaiself, the Golden Princess.

Inheriting her mother's blinding beauty, and having reached the age of sixteen, she was at the age of marriage; a fact that caused the nobles to be restless.

The nobles were fighting to hold the Princess's hand in marriage because they knew that whoever was married to the Princess would be greatly elevated in status in riches.

Behind her was a young man in his teenage years, clad in a suit of pure white armor. His appearance could be summarized in a single word—intense.

Climb, the Princess's Personal Guard.

"Father, Warrior-Captain-sama," she bowed perfectly as she greeted the two of them.

The King smiled to Renner as she quickly walked over and nodded to Climb as he bowed deeply.

"Is the meeting finally over?"

"Yes, there wasn't much to discuss after all."

"Is that so? I was thinking about asking you something, so I decided to wait here so that I could tell you about it."

"Really now, I apologize then."

She turned to the King and began speaking about trivial matters. But one thing in their conversation caught Gazef's attention.

"Lakyus told me about inviting a new adamantine adventurer to Blue Rose. I am _so _excited to meet her," the Princess held her hands together. "I heard rumors about her beauty and her strength, but…"

Her blue eyes looked down and the corners of her mouth were starting to form a frown. It was clear that the Princess was sad.

"What is it?" the King distressingly asked his daughter.

As if she was troubled, she looked back at the King in worry.

"Um… the thing is, even though Lakyus-san had sent her an invitation to visit the Rose Garden for tea, she didn't receive any reply. I could understand, afterall, she must be busy, but still...I was looking forward to meet her," she told her father of her worries.

The King brought his hand to pat her head lovingly.

"Should I sent an invitation inviting her to the Royal Palace instead?"

At his suggestion, the Princess fumbled, clearly not expecting the King to fulfill her wishes immediately.

"No father, that's alright," she tried to reassure him. "Since Blue Rose was famous amongst Adventurers, she will accept the invitation someday, or I could send another invitation later. Oh! By the way Father, now is the time for me to go walking about with Climb. I'm really sorry to have interrupted your resting time."

"No, that's alright. Please go ahead. When you return please come to my chambers and continue your story."

"I understand. Then, let us go Climb."

Renner's dainty fingers tugged on Climb's clothing as an unconscious gesture, but when Climb discovered the Princess was doing so, his face hardened even further.

"Your humble servant shall take his leave, Your Majesty," he bowed, before following in the Princess's footsteps.

When they have left, the King smiled. "I probably should be pitying him, given that I'm the King, don't you think?"

"Your servant understands," and Gazef truly did.

The King was referring to the boy's past and his hardships after coming to the Palace.

"I know that it's foolish, but at the very least, I'd like to let my treasured daughter be happy. That is why Gazef," the King turned around to look at Gazef.

"Yes."

"The person Renner was referring to was your saviour right? Please send an invitation and a carriage to E-Rantel. I will be sending the invitation letter _personally_."

Gazef nodded at the King's sudden request, and when the King turned back to walk to his chamber, he couldn't help but to let out a small smile at the thought of meeting her again.

"It will be as you will."

* * *

**Non-Canon Omake**

* * *

"And so, with the exception of the 4th and 8th Floor Guardians, all the Floor Guardians and the members of the Pleiades have all gathered with haste to heed your call."

The Floor Guardians divided themselves left and right with the Pleiades in the middle, keeping their heads down while the Overseer of Nazarick gave them an introduction in front of the Supreme Being.

Sitting regally on the throne was a skeletal Overlord whose deathly aura could be felt across the Throne Room.

But no one was standing next to him.

"My apologies for gathering you all on such a busy day."

"What are you saying, Ainz-sama?" Aura said vigorously. "Just give the word and we'll drop everything to serve you!"

"That-That's right! Of course!" Mare replied with the same enthusiasm.

Cocytus huffed a cold breath that could be felt by the small Vampire beside him. "It. Is. Our. Greatest. Joy. As. Your. Guardians."

"For we have pledged ourselves to you, My Lord," Shalltear continued with a bow. "Nothing would delight us more!"

"Your loyalty pleases me, everyone," Ainz replied.

"You are most gracious," Demiurge received the compliment from his master on behalf of all the Floor Guardians. "Incidentally, Ainz-sama, may I inquire as to the location of Lady Tiamat?"

Demiurge was standing on his left side, and he didn't see their Lady anywhere, which was something out of the norm.

"Ah...Uhm...Yes," The Overlord shifted his gaze to look at Demiurge. "About that…"

He moved his cloak to reveal a small shadow placed between his skeletal legs.

The rest of the people in the room watched in shock.

"Oh my…" a gasp could be heard from the Succubus on his right.

A small hand grasped the bottom of Ainz's cloak.

"Is-is that…"

"There's no way…"

A small girl no older than three was sitting between Ainz's feet, clutching his cloak with her small hands.

"**LADY TIAMAT?!**"

The goggling group who gathered in the Throne room gawked at the child as big round amethyst eyes looked back at them.

She looked at them, and then she looked back to Ainz.

"Papa!" she chirped innocently.

The child they suspected to be Lady Tiamat was sheepishly pulled away by Ainz as he put her on his lap.

"Yes, as you have suspected, this is Tiamat," Ainz sighed.

Demiurge and his sharp eyes caught a strange object in Ainz's hands. "Perchance, is it because of the item you hold in your hand?"

A strangely shaped cone colored in red and yellow lines circling around it was held in Ainz's left arm, as his right was trying to keep Tiamat, who was attempting to climb his shoulders, in place.

Out of all the Pleiades, Yuri was the palest because of the extreme change in her Lady and how dangerously was Ainz holding her, fearing that she would fall down the Throne.

"M-My Lady…"

But this went unnoticed by Ainz.

"Precisely. Incidentally Demiurge, do you know what this is?" he reached out his hand to give Demiurge the weird item and Demiurge took it, inspecting it.

"Regretfully, I am unable to give you the answer you need due to my lack of wisdom."

Yuri who was breathing hard at this point was finally noticed by Sebas, who stood on her right.

"Yuri, is something the matter?"

"Ah…" she paled looking at the item as well.

She knew it...that item was dangerous.

"Do you perhaps knew something about that item?"

"That...is an item which could destroy the world."

The rest gasped in shock and awe. The fact that Yuri knew more than Demiurge about something was worth noting.

"Don't worry my faithful members of Nazarick. I have contacted Pandora's Actor about this and he is currently researching how to turn Tiamat back to her original form," he said with forced conviction, trying to reassure his subjects.

He put both his hands under the little Tiamat's arms and lifted her up in front of him.

Small gurgles of happiness could be heard as tiny Tiamat tried to touch the chandelier in the Throne Room, reaching up to the shiny crystals.

"Tonight, I, Ainz Ooal Gown," he began. "Will assign you to a babysitting schedule!"

* * *

**Day One: Shalltear**

* * *

She was brought to the big damp and dark room filled with leathers as the Vampire looked at the _foreign creature_ nervously.

Lady Tiamat was sitting on her leather bed, and Shalltear sighed in exasperation.

She finally had Lady Tiamat on her bed, but this situation was clearly unexpected.

Smol Tia tried to reach out her hand to grab the pretty pink locks in front of her.

"Pretty!" she muttered happily.

Shalltear look at Tiamat who smiled and tried to get closer to her hair.

Even though Lady Tiamat was smaller and regressing in intelligence—the poor thing couldn't even say a complete sentence for crying out loud—Shalltear couldn't help but notice that she had the same warm smile.

She absentmindedly pulled the baby Tiamat away from where she stored her _cough _toys.

Ainz-sama would scold her if she let Lady Tiamat near adult content.

Shalltear let out another sigh. It really was a shame that the Goddess was only a small child now when she was finally on her bed. Even _she _didn't have that sort of fetish.

The Vampire hugged the little Tiamat against her. The baby cooed as Shalltear soaked up her warmth. Perhaps this wasn't so bad after all.

But Shalltear couldn't deny that she missed that well developed bosom of the Goddess.

"Please grow up fast, My Lady..."

* * *

**Day Two: Cocytus**

* * *

"U. N. C. L. E."

"Unggle."

"No. My. Lady. Let. Us. Try. Again. Uncle." every time his Lady failed, his mandibles clacked together in excitement over the cuteness of his Lady.

"Angcul?" she tilted her head in confusion.

After she had run around the whole floor and nearly falling down a few dozen times, Cocytus the worrywart, decided that he had to settle down to teach his Lady how to call upon him.

"Repeat. After. Me. Un."

"Ang."

"K."

"Kuh."

"Ul."

"—Al."

"Good." he nodded. "Now. Put. It. All. Together. Uncle."

Adopting a confused look, she prompted him into saying it a few more times before she broke into a sunny smile.

"Blue, blue! Pretty blue!" and clapped happily at her accomplishment.

"No," he yelped, "It's. Uncle. U. N. C. L. E."

His mandibles clacked as Tiamat furrowed her small brows.

"Blue?" she said, tilting her head to the side with innocent amethyst eyes.

"That. Is. Not. My. Name." he huffed cold breath at her, and she giggled excitedly at the sudden influx of chilly air.

Bringing her up and onto his knees, the insect leaned closer and stared.

"Please. Say. It. For. Me. My. Lady?" he pleaded.

When the small Lady just looked at him in confusion, he finally relented and gave up.

"Uncle!" she shrieked in the cheerful way that babies were known to do.

Immediately, the giant blue Floor Guardian leapt from where he sat and enveloped her in a hug, obviously pleased at her accomplishment.

If it could even be called that.

* * *

**Day Three: Pandora's Actor**

* * *

Tiamat teleported before the gates Treasury, taking off her guild ring before opening the monolithic doors, while carrying cheesecake and tea in her basket.

She remembered the one time she forgot to take off her guild ring.

Damn Luci Fer…

When he made the Treasury and asked her to check, he didn't tell her anything but to enter.

The golems attacked her without any warning. She remembered being scared senseless when it happened; it was a scene straight out of a horror movie.

His defense was, "Your build could handle these unequipped golems anyways, so why do you care lol."

She shook her head clear of unpleasant thoughts, and instead filled it with the smell of freshly baked cheesecake. Tiamat hoped that the resident Doppelganger would enjoy eating the baked good as much as she enjoyed making it.

When she walked out from the other side of『Gate』, she sniffed the venom filled air, 『Blood of Jormungar』she believed, and wondered whether her cheese cake would be affected by it.

Well, it wasn't like Pandora's Actor could leave the Treasury. He was assigned as the last line of defense after all.

This was the least she could do for him.

After getting used to the extremely acidic air, she stepped out, calling for the Floor Guardian.

"Pandora's Actor?"

He was sitting on one of the purple sofas, with his back facing her. He jumped in shock, dropping the six armed demonic-looking figurine he was cleaning, at the sound of her voice.

"Meine Dame?" Pandora's Actor exclaimed in shock when he looked at the Dragoness who was standing on his floor, all by herself.

She did say that she would come and visit him again after the _unspeakable_ sofa incident, but he never realized that the day would come this soon.

"Hello!" She smiled at him warmly, "I hope you're not busy, but I brought cakes and tea," she said as she lifted up her basket.

"D-Danke Meine Dame, you don't have to do this…" he mentioned, feeling shame at wasting the precious time of a Supreme Being for such a trivial task.

"I wanted to, and besides, I feel like it wasn't fair for you to stay all cooped up here by yourself while the rest of the Floor Guardians already got a taste of what I cooked."

He was very surprised to see her on his floor visiting him, baking cakes especially for _him_.

He was touched that she cared.

Just how long had it been since someone had visited him anyway? Other than the cockroaches, he meant.

He asked her to sit on one of the sofas while he sat on the other one, and watched as she proceeded to cut the cake by herself, an act that surprised Pandora's Actor even more.

"Meine Dame! You don't have to do that," He blurted out loud.

Tiamat just looked at him and smiled, disregarding his statement and continued cutting him a slice of cake.

"Here."

She served him a plate of delicious looking cheesecake and moved to pour him a cup of tea.

Pandora's Actor raised his voice to speak out again, but the Supreme Being in front of him beat him up to it.

As the soft porcelain glass slightly glanced against the wooden table, she said to him, "I told you I want to, it's fine," she reassured him.

With some hesitation, he finally took the first bite.

It was weird for Tiamat to see Pandora's Actor eat, mainly because he had no facial expressions, and secondly, when the cake went into his mouth, it just disappeared, like it was swallowed by a black hole.

She waited until Pandora's Actor had finished savoring his first piece, already anticipating his reaction. True, everyone reacted with delight, but it was something she would never ever get tired of.

"It's delicious!" Pandora's Actor proclaimed joyfully.

She beamed at his praise.

Pandora's Actor diligently put every single piece into his mouth.

"I'm glad you like it."

Before she knew it, his spindly fingers reached for the rest of the tray, happily eating the rest of the cheesecake. She let out a small laugh when he questioned whether he could eat the whole thing when he was about half finished.

Seeing him eat with such gusto, Tiamat offered him, "I'll come by to visit once a week."

He immediately stopped eating.

"O-once a week?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Well, at first I was planning on visiting you everyday, but it seems that the poison was too brutal even for me," Tiamat looked at her status where her HP was slightly dropping by the minute.

"You don't have to Meine Dame. The very thought of it is enough."

It's true, he was happy at the mere thought that she was thinking about him.

"It's alright. With my high resist I wouldn't take too much damage, the only downside is that I can't stay too long in the Treasury. And besides, isn't it lonely to eat alone?"

Those words hit him straight through his heart.

It was true that he felt a little bit lonely sometimes. He understood that his God had placed him here because his role was the most important in all of Nazarick.

But there was no one for him to talk to.

Without him even realizing, he already mustered up a reply.

"W-would that really be alright?"

"Of course!" the Goddess beamed cheerfully at him.

She replied without a single ounce of hesitation, a warm smile gracing her features.

It was as if she truly wanted to spend her precious time with him, even at the cost of damaging her own HP.

He wanted to cry.

As a gesture of thanks, he proceeded to show her the wonderful collection of Nazarick before she left.

He just wanted to spend more time with her.

That was until he reached the unidentified treasure and let Lady Tiamat touch it.

* * *

His mind flashed back to the present just as he saw the baby Tiamat waddle over to a mountain of gold in an attempt to swim in it.

He almost screamed when she choked on one of the gold coins.

He knew this was his punishment for being careless.

Immediately, he picked her up and gave her a few pats on her back, forcing the coin out from her throat.

She moved away and shot forward towards one of the diamond shields and licked it, slobbering all over the shiny trinket.

He shrieked as his poker expression showed his blatant disgust. "No, Meine Dame! Keep your spit away from the treasures!"

At his warning, she pouted.

As he was wiping down the treasures to restore their former beauty, from the corner of his eye he could see that his Lady's hand was slowly inching towards one of the shiniest gold coins near her.

"Meine Dame!" he squealed, "No! Do not put that in your mouth!"

She stared back at him unimpressed.

She climbed the big mountain of gold and once she reached the top, she plopped down on her butt and began to roll down to the floor.

"Meine Dame, I think you should stop now," Pandora's Actor called over her happy wails. "—_Mein Gott,_ _get away from those stairs!_"

* * *

**Day Four: Demiurge**

* * *

Demiurge stared happily at the small Supreme Being before him.

He had never been able to spend much time with Lady Tiamat due to his responsibilities in ensuring the security of Nazarick, so time spent with his Lady was always valuable.

Even if she had transformed into a little child.

Currently he was content with watching his Lady grow, as he taught her about her powers little by little.

Of course, that was if Pandora's Actor didn't find a solution to settle this issue.

Adapting was one of the things Demiurge was well acquainted with after all.

Her curious eyes travelled to the stream of lava on the Seventh Floor, and her small arms reached down to touch the glowing substance.

Demiurge who was carrying his lady in his palm made a quick turn to his left and knelt down to let his Lady touch the molten fluid.

She stuck her fingertips in the lava and proceeded to lick it.

"Uhm, Demiurge-sama…" said one of the Evil Lords, scared that Lady Tiamat didn't have her previous resistance since her form had regressed.

"What is it?"

"I'm afraid that the lava will harm Lady Tiamat..." it said with uncertainty.

Demiurge thought about what his subordinate said, but dismissed it completely.

After the schedule had been given to the Floor Guardians, Demiurge asked Albedo to look at Tiamat's status and they saw that Lady Tiamat still had her abilities. None of it was affected by the mysterious item which only seemed to regress one's mentality and body to that of a small child.

If he was not absolutely certain of this fact, he would have locked Lady Tiamat in a secure room with not a single potentially harmful thing in sight.

"That's alright, Wrath," Demiurge smiled at him confidently, never letting go of his hold on his Lady.

He remembered that he had read something interesting in Ashurbanipal, something related to Psychology. Certainly a trait that he desired to learn slowly with time.

The latest set of books he had read focused on the human psyche.

Manipulation, he remembered, was a key factor in gaining influence. If he let people think too much then they were more likely to make a logical choice, but if her guided them to feel a certain way, he would have a much easier time getting what he wanted.

In this case, the most ideal target would be someone who had little control over their emotions.

His gemstone eyes travelled down to the Supreme Being, and the small Lady gave him a gummy smile in return.

As he said earlier, it didn't matter if Lady Tiamat was to go back or not to her original form.

Because he would make sure to turn his current situation to something that would benefit him the most.

* * *

**Day Four: Aura and Mare**

* * *

"Mare?" his sister tried to get his attention as he was reading on his usual place in the arena.

He looked up from the book he was reading; an engaging story about Lady Tiamat's lore, the last volume of the Supreme Beings collection.

"Yes?"

"Where's Lady Tiamat?" Aura asked.

"Uhm, Demiurge said that he'll take care of Lady Tiamat from this point on."

"WHAT?" Aura screamed at the outrageous response, waking the baby dragons from their slumber. "He can't do that! Today's supposed to be _our_ time!"

With that, Aura left to bug Demiurge while Mare closed his book and followed behind her.

Considering his sister's temper, he knew something was about to go down soon if he didn't interfere.

* * *

**Day Five: Aura and Mare (postponed schedule)**

* * *

"Look at what I brought My Lady!" Aura excitedly said to the small child.

The child giggled as Aura set her down on Mare's lap at the VIP box in the Arena.

Aura had gotten three white tea cups and a piece of chocolate.

"This will be a simple game, are you ready?" Aura explained cheerfully.

Aura turned the three cups upside down and put the piece of chocolate in the cup on the middle.

"L-look at the chocolate, okay?" Mare said softly to the Supreme Being on his lap.

"Now I want you to follow this cup," Aura tapped the middle cup with her finger. "_This_ _one_, okay?"

Placing the middle cup next to the right cup, she gave it a tap and said, "Follow."

With exaggerated slowness she shifted them from place to place, mixing the order until she had decided that it was enough.

"N-Now which one is it, My Lady?"

The child look at the three cups with her big and round eyes, before pointing to the cup in the middle.

"Da!"

After she did so, she was shocked to hear the two dark elves in front of her let out a gleeful squeal and a high pitched giggle.

"Good job My Lady!" Aura beamed, with a big proud grin plastered on her face.

At the compliment, the child smiled widely, reaching out her hand to grab the chocolate on the ground.

"M-My Lady!" Mare shouted nervously. "That's not clean don't eat it!"

Ignoring him, she put the piece of chocolate in her mouth and suckled on it with her round cheeks.

Looking a little more than panicked, Aura immediately moved forward and pried her jaws open with precision, fishing for the dirty chocolate.

Every night Ainz-sama asked for a daily report to be submitted with regards to Lady Tiamat which all the Floor Guardians were allowed to read. She should've known from what she read in Pandora's Actor's report that her mouth was like a high-level bear trap.

Finally, Aura managed to get the chocolate out, it had taken a few frustrated screams out of the small Dragoness to release it, but at least Aura and Mare could breathe a sigh of relief.

Staring down at the drool-covered piece of chocolate, Aura sighed before tossing it away to the baby dragons below.

"O-Our Lady is really smart." Mare patted the child's short hair.

Blinking her eyes innocently, Tiamat responded with a smile before wandering closer to the ledge, calling on the baby Dragons, who happily obliged.

"My Lady!" Aura looked on in horror, as the baby dragons carried the small child in between their claws as they flew away. "No! Get down here! _Bad_ Dragons!"

* * *

**Day Six: Albedo**

* * *

Albedo was preparing to go to the Arena as soon as it was the time to pick up Lady Tiamat, but she was surprised to see Aura and Mare in front of the Throne Room, clothes covered in dirt and weary expressions on their faces.

Aura gave Lady Tiamat to Albedo and immediately left the vicinity.

She wondered what was wrong with the two of them, but she guessed she would find out later when she read their report.

She looked at the small child bundled in a blanket, peacefully sleeping, with a small smile on the corners of her lips.

Albedo looked at her fondly.

'_She must be having good dreams…_'

But slowly her look changed to sorrowful eyes filled with regret.

She remembered that day where Lady Tiamat fought against Shalltear; she thought about it so much that it was burned in her memory.

"I'm s-sorry…" Albedo's voice broke.

Demiurge was right, Lady Tiamat only won because of luck. If she didn't release her dragon in time…

She shook her head, dismissing the dark thought immediately.

"It was my fault. As the Overseer of Nazarick, I should have come up with a better plan," she bitterly said.

In the massive room, not a single soul heard her.

As if Lady Tiamat had sensed her dejection, her smile slowly turned into a frown, and she was about to let out a cry until Albedo lulled her back to sleep.

"I promise I'll be better," she whispered. "I won't disappoint you, so please…"

Don't leave me behind.

* * *

**Day Seven**

* * *

"And so, with the exception of the 4th and 8th Floor Guardians, all the Floor Guardians and the members of the Pleiades have all gathered with haste to heed your call."

"Well done, my subjects," Ainz boomed. "Now, Pandora's Actor, please step forward."

"_It will be as My Lord desires!_"

Ainz cringed.

"Tell everyone about what you've found," he instructed.

Pandora's Actor turned around and in his hand, he was carrying the same item that caused Lady Tiamat's regression. The rest of them listened intently for what he was about to say.

"This item is called 『子供の春』, a mysterious item that as we know, regresses ones form to a child. However, I recently found out that its effect is not permanent. It will last for about a week before Lady Tiamat can return to her original form again."

They breathed a sigh of relief at this information.

The small Lady Tiamat was still sleeping, currently in Ainz's hold who sat on the Throne.

Demiurge pushed his glasses up, "Just when will she return?"

"Ah, right about…now."

Suddenly, a bright light enveloped the sleeping child, and once the light subsided, they could see the form of Lady Tiamat who was sleeping peacefully against Ainz's shoulder.

"Hm…" her voice was drowsy as she woke up, slowly opening her eyes to see a skeletal face near hers.

She almost screamed in fear.

"A-Ainz? The heck, you scared the hell out of me!"

"**LADY TIAMAT!**"

Aura and Mare jumped and proceeded to body slam into Tiamat who was sitting on Ainz's lap, followed by Shalltear who rested her face on Tiamat's chest, smiling in bliss.

The rest of the Floor Guardians stayed behind.

"Eh? What's wrong?" Tiamat asked, clearly confused by the bizarre turn of events. "Did something happen?"

Aura began crying buckets, "Please don't turn into a child again!"

"T-That's right!"

"Ah~how I missed these wonderful breasts of yours…"

"What. A. Shame. I. Thought. That. She. Will. Call. Me. Uncle. Once. More."

"Indeed," Demiurge agreed, "I guess we all just wanted some quality time with our Lady."

Albedo elegantly clapped her hands together, "Now, now. You are in the presence of the Supreme Beings of Nazarick. _Behave_," her tone was downright frosty.

Immediately Aura, Mare, and Shalltear went back to their respective lines with abashed grins.

"What happened?" she asked Ainz.

"Before I explain, I wanted to ask," he helped her stand on her feet. "Do you remember anything?"

"Uh...remember what exactly?"

"Then what's the last thing you remember?"

"Hm, the last thing I remember was that I visited Pandora's Actor and..." her gaze shifted to Pandora's Actor and the cone in his hand, "Oh! That item!"

"Yes Meine Dame, this item can change someone's original form to something more youthful. I think around the age of three to five years old. In fact…"

"Pandora's Actor!" Ainz barked out.

But it was too late.

An all-consuming light shone from the item, enveloping everyone in it, and just before it popped, Ainz shielded Tiamat with his cloak.

Once the light had subsided, Ainz slackened his hold on Tiamat, letting her stand on her own.

"Holy shiittttt…" Tiamat facepalmed.

"Nope. Nope. Nope. This is too much. I'm out." Ainz was about to escape from the Throne Room, but Tiamat held him in place.

"_OH NO YOU DON'T!_"

Each and every one of the Floor Guardians had been changed to toddlers.

"**Papa! Mama!**" they brightly giggled.

* * *

**A/N: Since summer vacation is over, we will be updating biweekly from this chapter ****onward****, but if you join my Discord you will have access to the newest chapter earlier. So come and join! We also ask for suggestions often in the Discord, which could highly affect the direction of the story, so what are you waiting for? Here is the link:**

'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (colon) (slash) (slash) **d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range **r**efreshing **d**rink . **gg **(slash) JUejk8J

**Still we made it past Season 1! Whew that's crazy. We're going on Season 2 at this point. Thank you to everyone who has been supporting this story through thick and thin!**

**Btw, thank you to _TeaKenz_ who requested the omake! And special thanks to ****_The-Killer40513_***

**Hackslashbash: Translation for the item is Child's Springtime.**

**Question: Please let me know which Floor Guardian omake is your favorite!**

* * *

***Clap Clap* Bonus Content *Clap Clap***

**CONGRATULATIONS PEWDIEPIE FOR GETTING MARRIED AND FOR REACHING 100 MIL!**

* * *

**Warning: This Bonus Content doesn't have any correlation with Pewdiepie whatsoever.**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal, Racial Class, Volume VII**

**God Beast**

**Chapter I**

The Nine Realms was once the primordial void Ginnungagap that eventually became the inhospitable wastelands that were Nilfheim and Muspelheim. In this era, only monsters of incomparable strength could hope to survive.

Eventually, as time passed, the other worlds emerged from the branches of the Origin Tree Yggdrasil; Asgard and Vanaheim heralding the Era of Gods. The remaining worlds, notably Midgard, gave rise to the mortal races. Harmony existed for as long as all beings kept to their own affairs in their home worlds.

Peace prevailed until the world of Man rebelled against the will of Yggdrasil, consumed by a lust for glory, conquest, and fame. Mankind swept over much of the World Tree, expanding to Alfheim, the world of the exquisite elves, Svartalfheim, the deep cavern of the stalwart dwarves, to even Asgard, the realm of the ineffable gods.

Yggdrasil, sensing a deviance in its original will, flooded the remaining worlds that remained relatively untouched from the hands of Humanity full of mana, giving birth to monstrous champions to drive back the hordes of Mankind.

Titanic Giants trampled mountains underfoot, Ancient Sea Serpents drowned entire fleets, Infernal Demons corrupted the souls of countless men, Voracious Undead devoured the souls of the endless damned, and Indomitable Dragons ripped through legions of heroes who sought eternal glory.

Even still, Humanity pressed on in its expansion over the Nine Realms as they slayed monster after monster. Even the Behemoths of unimaginable might could not stand against the hordes of Man.

Yggdrasil, despairing if it could feel such feelings as despair, decided to force mana into a select few champions rather than over a vast host of creatures.

As pure Mana congregated around the select few Beasts who received the blessing of the World Tree, they ascended beyond just the merely powerful, but into the Divine. Mythical Beasts, the absolute Pinnacles of their races, who could command entire armies of vicious monsters and strength that mortals could only dream of.

Their power and vitality rivaled the gods themselves, so therefore they were titled 'God Beasts'.

Legions of humans would stand against a single God Beast and its horde, only to be swept away in futile resistance. For such a Beast extended numerous Blessings to those that heeded its call.

Despite the rise of Yggdrasil's strongest champions, humans birthed champions of their own, heroes who rivaled the strength of even these god-like Beasts. The two factions clashed for innumerable eons and struggle even now as they battle for supremacy over the Nine Realms, neither gaining a permanent foothold over the other; their eternal struggle bringing balance to the Nine Realms.

For Humanity and Monsters cannot live side by side.

* * *

**A/N: This chapter is mostly dedicated to _The-Killer40513_. We heard you loud and clear :) ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**


	18. Chapter 18: Reconciliation

**Chapter 18: Reconciliation**

* * *

The morning after Ainz had asked Tiamat to rest, he called for another meeting in the Throne Room.

His eyes zeroed in on Tiamat who was whimpering next to Albedo.

She remembered several instances where Ainz was furious at her for messing up quests in YGGDRASIL. What was about to come was definitely going to be pure torture.

"Albedo," his baritone voice could be heard to the ends of the room. Tiamat couldn't help but flinch at the loud sound.

"Yes," she bowed.

"For this incident, I am willing to let your error pass. From this moment on, anything that involves Tiamat must go through me for approval. Moreover, you will have to report everything to me, even if you consider it mundane. Every. Single. Thing."

She lowered her head, "As you wish, Ainz-sama."

"Tiamat!"

She was shocked at the sudden change of tone, "Y-Yes!"

"Did you remember what you said yesterday?" his red eyes looming over hers made her feel smaller and smaller

"Y-Yesterday…?"

"So you don't remember hm? Let me remind you," he pointed his staff at Tiamat. "You said not to blame Albedo for everything you did, and I must agree. As the mastermind, you will be severely punished."

Tiamat shakily nodded.

Ainz shot her a look, "You will help me with paperwork..._forever_."

For Ainz, the look on her face was priceless. Her face went from drooped in depression, to mouth gaping wide in shock, and finally her teeth grinded together in fury.

In her previous life, she was a baker. She did not do paperwork. She had next to no paperwork in her previous life, and now, this skeleton in front of her was telling her that she had to do his job.

Oh _hell_ no.

She opened her mouth to rebut his decision, but Ainz was one step faster.

"Do you have a _problem_?" his eyes blazing with impatient annoyance.

"Eep!"

"_**HMM**_?"

"N-No, of course not!"

"Then, from this moment on, you will have someone follow you outside of Nazarick for safety measures against _yourself_. I assume you have no problem with that as well?"

She shook her head in complete submission.

"Good, then both of you are dismissed," Ainz regally stood from his throne and just as he was about to leave the room, he turned around. "I forgot. Starting from today, you are prohibited from going into the kitchen until _I_ say so."

Then he left.

The Dragoness was left by herself between all the Floor Guardians who were present.

Aura came up and patted her Lady who was on her knees in disbelief. Considering how angry Ainz-sama was yesterday, this punishment meant nothing. But she still felt sorry for the Supreme Being in front of her.

"There, there…"

Tiamat shamelessly began to weep.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

"Are you done with the paperwork?" Ainz asked flicking through the papers on his table.

Beside him was another table, as per his order, that had been brought to his office. Tiamat who was sitting facing his left side, was slouching on the table. Her head rested against it, looking away from him.

"Hn."

"Did you give it to Albedo?"

"Hn."

"Have you checked it?"

"Hn."

"Albedo."

"Yes," Albedo immediately gave the paperwork Tiamat had done to Ainz.

"You made a mistake here."

"Hn."

"Here, here and here."

"Hn. Hn. Hn."

"Oi, take your job seriously."

Tiamat's head turned to look at Ainz but her position remains unchanged.

"And who was the one who put me here?"

"Who was the one who brought this upon herself?" He questioned back.

Tiamat banged her head on the table, "Me."

"Who was the one making stupid plans?"

"...me."

"That's right. This is your punishment. So do it properly."

"Hn…"

"Oi!"

"But Ainz, it's paperwork, _paperwooooork_!"

"From what Albedo had told me, you did a pretty decent job last time. Isn't that right Albedo?"

Albedo, who was standing at Ainz's side, was fighting to keep a smile off her face as she watched her Lady's antics.

It seemed that the Dragoness was the only one who could be so carefree with the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown himself.

"That's right, Ainz-sama," Albedo proudly declared. "Just after Lady Tiamat had created a fixed format and budgeting form to be used in Nazarick, productivity has increased by 200% and the amount of mistakes in documents have been reduced by 80%. Moreover, with Lady Tiamat's idea, I have made countless changes with how the documents should be reviewed, which decreases my workload significantly."

Tiamat whimpered at the praise.

It seemed that there was no way to escape.

When she landed her eyes on the Overlord, she eyed him warily. If he had an expression on his face, she was sure that a grin lit up his face at Albedo's words.

The Overlord was positively beaming.

It seemed that torturing Tiamat was in line with his -500 Karma Rating.

"I want to cook…" she muttered, burying her face in the table once more.

"Perish the thought."

"Cotton cady, smores, rice krispies, waffle stack, brownie, ice cream, creme brulee, cannoli, pudding, pecan pie, cinnamon rolls, apple caramel, muffin, beignets, chocolate cookies, glazed doughnuts, fruit tarts."

Ainz simply ignored her.

"Bon bon chocolate, swiss roll, gâteau au chocolat et cerises, gâteau roulé aux pêches, saint marc, tarte exotique, tarte aux fruits, tartelette chocolat et orange, gâteau roulé aux fraises, charlotte aux fraises, crémeux abricot, roule aux noisette et cannelle, gâteau de hojicha au lait."

He was starting to get annoyed.

"I want to bake cheesecake. Cheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakecheesecakegâteaugâteaugâteaucheesecake."

"Please stop."

But she kept going.

Ainz sighed.

"If you finish all of this week's paperwork today, I'll let you in the kitchen for two hours."

Tiamat's head immediately shot up from the desk, looking positively vibrant and awake.

"One week's worth of paperwork for _three_ hours."

"Two."

"Two hours."

"Two."

"Two weeks. Two and a half?"

"_Two_."

"Fine."

"Deal."

They shook hands.

"You know you just agreed to do two weeks of paperwork for two hours in the kitchen, right?" his words dripping with condescension.

At the realization, she could only sob in defeat.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

She was stuck in Ainz's office for two weeks straight.

Since there was no need for the Overlord to sleep, she was forced to sleep in Ainz's room, only to wake up and do more work the next day.

Tiamat wasn't even allowed to eat.

Ainz had forced her to wear『Ring of Sustenance』so that there would be no time taken away from her work. At the very least, he let her take it off to sleep.

While she was doing his job, Ainz occasionally went out to build his reputation in the Adventurers Guild.

The only thing she could do was grumble at her desk while doodling on a piece of paper in an attempt to ease her boredom.

But today was different.

Today was the last day of her two week period, and after she was done with the paperwork for the day, she would finally be allowed in the kitchen for two hours.

Her mind wandered away at what would be quick to cook since she had to make lunch and dinner for the homunculi maids, as well as the floor guardians of Nazarick.

The mere thought of it brought her an immeasurable amount of joy. She hummed while sitting on her table, waiting for Albedo to come in with the day's work.

"My Lady," Albedo said entering the room, carrying a huge stack of papers with her. "These are the reports that need your approval for today."

"Yes, thank you Albedo. Please put them here!" she patted the table.

The paper stack was neatly placed on the table as usual.

"You seem very happy today, Lady Tiamat."

"Of course! This is the last day of the two week period! I wonder what I should cook after this…" Tiamat almost started drooling at the thought of finally eating food after two weeks.

"My Lady, I'm sorry to say this, but Ainz-sama said that after your two hours are up, you are to be brought to the office once again."

Just like a bubble, all the happy thoughts immediately popped above Tiamat's head.

She hit her head on the table and groaned in pain.

"Please don't remind me, Albedo…" Tiamat almost cried just at the mere thought of it.

Albedo smiled at Lady Tiamat's grumbling.

"I have to say My Lady, as someone who hates doing paperwork, you know what you are doing, as expected of the Supreme Being of Nazarick. I'm starting to see why Ainz-sama wanted you to help."

"Not you too Albedo," Tiamat sighed. "It's not like I hate paperwork, it's that I'm so slow at it, while Ainz had finished two weeks of work in five days. The fact that you have to stand there and wait until I finish makes me feel so ashamed of myself."

"I don't think you're slow, My Lady. You are simply meticulous. After Ainz-sama points out a mistake, you never make the same error again. The fact that you adapt so easily to this makes me a bit jealous," Albedo smiled wryly.

"You're giving me too much credit here, I'm pretty sure the work that Ainz gave me wasn't important to Nazarick."

"On the contrary, My Lady," Albedo started to explain, "Ainz-sama gave you the most important papers to review."

Albedo had never seen Lady Tiamat turned her head so fast.

Tiamat's eyes jolted wide open in shock.

As soon as Albedo had said that, Tiamat immediately moved to check the stacks of paper in front of her.

She had never checked the titles of the papers that were stacked in front of her; she only made sure that the content were in line with one another, as well as making sure that Nazarick's resources were being used properly.

Things such as food, clothing, alcohol, magic scrolls, and many others.

Weekly Food Expenditure, she flipped to the next report on the pile.

Nazarick Total Income and Expenditure Report, she furiously grabbed the next paper in the stack.

POP Summon Count to Cost Sheet, she placed the reports back on top of the stack, eyebrows twitching.

'_So he did give his work to me, that asshole!_'

"Y-You did cross check what I did right?" Tiamat worriedly asked Albedo.

If something was wrong with one of the documents, she would have to redo everything to ensure that everything was perfectly in line. That was two weeks of work. _Two weeks_!

Thankfully, Albedo replied with an amused smile on her face.

"Yes, My Lady. Ainz-sama also rechecked your documents and he was the one who did the final approval for the documents. If one of your documents had a mistake, Ainz-sama simply ordered me to give it back to you."

Tiamat breathed a sigh of relief.

The only time a document had been returned to her was the very first time she did the paperwork together with Ainz. After that, she did not receive anything else to rectify.

Thank God for Albedo's administrative skills.

She picked up the next report on the pile.

Daily Report on Abelion Sheeps, and when she opened the documents she saw a relatively simple spreadsheet that contained columns regarding gender, age, and level of magic scrolls produced.

If she was not mistaken, Abelion Sheep was the farm Demiurge managed to set up to produce parchment for magic scrolls.

She turned the report to its last page.

About nine new sheep had entered Demiurge's farm yesterday, totaling in a large number of eighty-two Abelion Sheep.

'_What kind of monster is an Abelion Sheep anyways?_'

She had never heard of such a monster in YGGDRASIL before, and as far as she knew, even if the Adventurer Guild didn't have a codex entry; she had never seen any Abelion Sheep to subjugate at the quest board in the guild before.

'_Perhaps some sort of satyr…?_'

She slowly reread the report, but found that Demiurge had only written the entry date and what kind of materials the sheep produced for Nazarick, but nothing in the report said anything about their food expenditures or the cost to grow them.

'_Weird._'

"Albedo, is this the only report on Abelion Sheep?" Tiamat asked.

"Yes. That is a new program created by Demiurge and was approved by Ainz-sama sometime this week. So currently this is the only report Demiurge is able to give us."

"Is this it?"

"Yes. Why? Is there something wrong?"

Tiamat looked at the report again, questioning its validity. This was the first report she had seen that had no expenditures written on it.

Since her job was to see whether Nazarick's resources were being used properly, it was difficult to judge the report because of its incompleteness.

Tiamat just hummed, thinking on what to do.

Since this was a report written by Demiurge, she could simply ask him later. There must be a reason why he didn't list any expenditures on it.

Besides, she trusted Demiurge.

Because of that she decided to put the report to the side for the time being.

Afterall, she had other reports to finish before lunch time.

"No," she said to Albedo, and proceed to work on the other reports.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

She hummed happily while chopping the ingredients for the day's lunch.

With the help of Sous Chef who had processed the meat for her, all she needed to do was to prepare the rest of it.

Today's meal was going to be curry!

First, she let the rice cook in a pot under a slow simmer, before cooking the meat with the remaining lard in the kitchen, seasoning it with salt and pepper.

When the beef was half done, she set it aside and used the residual oil from the beef to cook the rest of the vegetables.

Thanks to Ainz, she now knew where most of the vegetables were coming from.

It turned out that Ainz had asked Lupusregina to watch over that village she had saved a while ago, and so Lupusregina sometimes bought lots of vegetables grown from Carne Village itself, which boosted the tiny village's economic capabilities, even if only a little bit.

With the leftover oil, she sauteed the onions, ginger and apples that she had grated until they were translucent; then shifting the flour into the pot to stir it.

After the flour was mixed into a paste, she put the rest of the potatoes and carrots and spices to stir.

Then she added tomato paste and red wine before adding sugar and soy sauce with water, and poured the mixture with the rest of the ingredients in the pot.

She let the pot simmer on low heat and waited until it began boiling before she added the beef back to the pot. In half an hour, she would come back to take the cover off and let the curry simmer for half and hour..

For dessert she made multiple batches of tiramisu. A titanic tiramisu for the maids and personal pan sized tiramisu for each of the floor guardians.

Tiamat wiped the sweat from her forehead. The heat didn't bother her much, but the effort it took to prepare so much food in such a short time was truly taxing.

After putting away the massive pot of curry and batches of tiramisu she had made, she decided to begin preparing for dinner.

She took a look at the clock. Her mouth twitched in a depressed frown as she saw that she only had half an hour left in her free time.

In a brief moment of contemplation, she wondered if she would be able to cook enough food for dinner for the majority of Nazarick. Tiamat quickly shook her head clear of such fantastical thoughts. Even she, the cooking fanatic that she was, wasn't capable of making _that _much food.

'_I still have half an hour left though…_'

In the end, she just decided to prepare all the dinner ingredients for Sous Chef instead.

After she finished cleaning up the kitchen, she turned to Yuri.

"Hey Yuri, can you deliver all of this food to the Floor Guardians and your sisters? I'm really sorry about asking you to carry this much…"

"Yes My Lady, I'll do so immediately," Yuri bowed before taking the gigantic container from Tiamat's hands.

'_This is really surreal…_' Tiamat thought to herself, staring at the ordinary-looking maid carrying a massive steel box.

"Is everything alright My Lady?"

Tiamat snapped herself out of her thoughts. "Oh! It's nothing, just thinking about something."

"I see. In that case, I will now go to deliver the food to their recipients."

"Thank you Yuri."

"It's no trouble My Lady," Yuri turned around and left the kitchen, carefully balancing the container so nothing was spilt.

Tiamat watched as Yuri left, before she finally tapped the guild ring on her finger, teleporting herself to the Sixth Floor.

She blinked her eyes as she got reorientated to her surroundings, and noticed that only Mare was running towards her.

Tiamat waited for Mare to reach her before she finally curiously asked, "Where's your sister Mare?"

"O-Oh! Onee-san w-went to work on that decoy Ainz-sama a-assigned her," Mare reflexively leaned in as Tiamat rubbed his head.

Tiamat wondered what she would do with the extra portion, before remembering that she had made a promise with a certain Doppelganger.

"Then would you mind if we eat somewhere else?"

Mare beamed, "N-No. I-I won't mind..."

"In that case, since the Treasury's air is super poisonous, I'm going to have to give you an item before we go in."

"I-It's fine My Lady! I have a skill that can p-protect me from poison for a while!"

"Oh," Tiamat felt dumb for a moment. Of course a Druid would have a skill that could handle poison.

"『P-Poison Immunity』!"

After Mare finished applying the buff on himself, Tiamat opened the gates for the two to pass through.

Just like the first time she saw him, Pandora's Actor was sitting on the sofa with his back facing her, cleaning one of the numerous treasures meticulously.

Even from a distance, she could see it shining brightly.

She knocked on the wall to avoid surprising him, just like when she first visited him.

"Pandora's Actor, I brought lunch!"

Pandora's Actor jumped in surprise.

"Meine Dame! I thought you were still working in Ainz-sama's office…?" Pandora's Actor stared at the Dragoness with astonishment.

"Ainz has allowed me to take a break for two hours," she walked towards him with a grin on her face, and Mare followed behind her.

"T-Then what are you doing here Meine Dame?! This is supposed to be your break time," he still couldn't believe that Lady Tiamat had bothered to take some of her precious resting time to meet him in the Treasury.

Even Mare looked at the Dragoness in shock.

Even though Mare was present in the Throne Room when Ainz-sama gave Lady Tiamat her punishment, it never crossed his mind that his Lady had taken some of her time to meet him and Pandora's Actor.

Him and his sister had spent so many lunches with their Lady that it had become a common occurrence, so when Lady Tiamat came to visit his floor for lunch, he didn't even bother thinking about it.

He felt ashamed of himself.

"Well, I figured that I would spend the rest of my time with you guys," she said happily, as if her personal time meant nothing to her.

Her simple words—they knew to her those words were simple, but to them they meant the whole world—filled them with indescribable joy.

Their hearts warmed up and pumped out torrents of happiness. They could see the joy in Lady Tiamat's eyes at the idea of having lunch with them, and the fact that she spent some of her time to cook and visit them caused a grin to bud on their faces.

At that moment, Pandora's Actor thanked his creator for making his expression, well… expressionless. Because when he looked at the dark elf, he knew that the boy was as happy as him when the boy looked away with a blush on his face.

Wait? A blush?

Thank goodness he was not _that_ oblivious.

"So, shall we?" Tiamat innocently asked, unaware of their reactions.

And so they ate, relaxing on the sofa as Pandora's Actor cleaned the treasures from the table. Mare swung his legs back and forth in absolute glee. Pandora's Actor, while she knew was certainly pleased, controlled himself better.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

Lunch finished quickly because the two of them couldn't stay long in the Treasury.

Tiamat made a mental note to ask Ainz to allow Pandora's Actor to roam about. She felt that it wasn't fair that most of the Floor Guardians were allowed to walk freely even outside of Nazarick, but Pandora's Actor have to stay in the Treasury. Speaking of which, Aureole was stuck on the Eighth Floor too...

She understood their importance as the last lines of defence, but still, it wasn't fair.

Aureole, she could accept, since she at least had Victim and the rest of the Eighth Floor denizens to accompany her, in addition to her duty of managing Nazarick's teleportation channels. Pandora's Actor however, didn't really need to guard the Treasury twenty-four seven.

Her mind wandered. Perhaps she could create some sort of system that allowed important announcements to quickly travel to all the Floor Guardians so that they could effectively prepare for when crisis arises? She would have to talk with Albedo after this.

"L-Lunch was delicious My Lady," Mare said as they walked around the Ninth Floor, spending the rest of her break time digesting the curry.

Broken out from her stupor, she replied to Mare with a smile.

"Did you like it?"

"Yes!"

"I'm glad to hear that. Sorry I couldn't make your favorite dish today, Mare."

"T-That's alright My Lady, whatever you cook is delicious," Mare said, innocently beaming.

Tiamat whimpered at his reply.

'_An Angel!_'

She couldn't help but to pat his head as Mare leaned his head against the weight of her hand, happy with the simple act of affection.

"He he…" Mare giggled.

'_Uwaa so cute!_'

At this point, Tiamat thought to herself that no matter what the twins did, she would consider it cute.

While they were enjoying their walk, Tiamat saw Shalltear leaving the bar with a forlorn expression on her face.

She was clutching her head as if she was drunk.

It had been two weeks after Shalltear's resurrection and Tiamat had not seen her even once, so she was really happy that they crossed paths during her break time.

She decided to wave at Shalltear.

"Shalltear!" she said out loud, since Shalltear was across the corridor.

Shalltear turned around and raised her hand, but then she immediately put it down and ran away.

"E-Eh? S-Shalltear…?"

Shalltear did not turn back.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

By dinner time, she was free and she returned to the bar. The strong odor of the heavy beverage wafted to her nose, and she resisted the urge to grimace.

She hated alcohol.

But that doesn't stop her from inching forward to where Sous Chef was bartending.

"My Lady," his optic spores noticed his Lady walking slowly towards him, "Is there anything I can do for you?" the Myconid asked.

"Evening, Sous Chef," Tiamat greeted, "Say, I'm looking for Shalltear. Is she here?"

"Yes, she was here earlier before you came, but she immediately went out."

In that moment, Tiamat had a small suspicion regarding Shalltear's weird actions.

'_Is she...avoiding me?_'

Vampires had a great sense of smell, not as sharp as a Dragon, but Shalltear could definitely detect her approaching the bar and leave accordingly.

"Did she say anything about why she was leaving?"

"I can't say for sure, however, she had been drinking a lot in these past two weeks. She did say something along the lines of drowning her sorrows in drink," he explained.

A puzzled look crossed Tiamat's face. When she asked him why, he could only shake his head in response.

"I did ask, but she said she didn't want to talk about it," As if reminded of something, he exclaimed excitedly. "She did moan pledges of loyalty."

Tiamat's was confused.

"...What?"

Sous Chef could only shrug in response.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

It was well before dawn.

She had a long day ahead of her.

With a warm breakfast in her tummy, she concentrated on the work before her and was pleasantly surprised when she found out that she had finished just after breakfast hours.

Tiamat sat up on her chair in Ainz's office, and a little to the side, Albedo stood checking her work.

The Succubus glanced back at her Lady and awarded her with a thin smile.

"I'm happy to say that all the paperwork needed to be done for Nazarick is finished My Lady. New reports will come in later after lunch so you're free for today."

"Then, I'll be going Albedo," Tiamat stood up from her seat, her eyes narrowing.

She had someone to hunt today.

Tiamat messaged Aureole Omega.

Two beeps sounded, signalling that she had connected.

[I need your help.]

⊂((・▽・))⊃

Aureole quickly located Shalltear.

[She's at the Bar.]

"Shalltear!"

The Vampire escaped even before Tiamat went into the bar.

[She's on the Sixth Floor,] Aureole said with a wry grin on her face.

"Shalltear?"

Tiamat could barely catch a glimpse of the Vampire turning to mist before running away from the pond where she was standing with Albedo and Aura.

This time, Aureole had to restrain her giggling.

[She's in her room now...]

"Shalltear…?"

Tiamat knocked on her door, but she received no reply.

Aureole was on the ground now, her entire body shaking as she held her stomach. The image of the Supreme Being chasing Shalltear around Nazarick was just too much for her to bear.

[S-She's in the C-Catacombs!]

She opened the door, "Shall…" before she could even finish her name, the Vampire had already vanished.

Somewhere on the Eighth Floor, Aureole Omega broke out in laughter.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

Tiamat tiredly walked into Ainz's office and sighed, slumping against the table.

She has spent hours chasing after Shalltear, but to no avail. The Vampire's agility was far greater than hers. Since the floor was huge, Shalltear easily escaped, and everytime Tiamat caught her scent, she had switched with one of her Vampire brides who had the same smell as her.

But from this she now knew for sure.

Shalltear was _definitely_ avoiding her.

At that moment, Albedo decided to enter Ainz's office followed with a small stack of papers in her hand.

"Lady Tiamat," Albedo greeted her with a smile. She was happy that the Dragoness was helping with her work, afterall it was always easier to work with someone than working alone. But Tiamat couldn't bring herself to reply.

"Hn."

"My, are you really doing this again?" Albedo stood in front of her table and gently put down a stack of papers, exasperatingly looking at the Dragoness.

"I wasn't trying to do anything…" she answered lamely.

Albedo just smiled at the Dragoness.

Since Lady Tiamat had done such a wonderful job with her paperwork, Albedo decide not to nag her about her current behaviour.

But when she looked at her like this, her heart started to sink in her chest. She was supposed to be happy and full of life, not..._this_.

"What's wrong?" before Albedo realized, those insolent words escaped from her mouth.

Tiamat sighed, finally sitting straight to look at Albedo. Albedo stiffened, a small unwelcome part of her wondering if the Supreme Being would get angry.

"Did I do something wrong recently?" she bluntly asked her.

At her question, Albedo frowned in confusion. "Did you do something to make you think that way?"

"No."

"What did you do this time? You can honestly tell me."

"I didn't do anything, I swear!"

"The last time we were left alone, we plotted things behind Ainz-sama's back and you almost destroyed an entire country, My Lady" she said gravely.

"S-Sorry," Tiamat said feeling bad for Albedo, "I did promise Ainz I wouldn't do something that crazy again…"

If she were to put herself in the Succubus's shoes, she would also feel really fed-up.

She had heard that Ainz had threatened to remove Albedo from her position as the Overseer of Nazarick because of her.

She frowned. If it was her, she wouldn't easily trust herself. Ainz's faith in her was simply too large.

Everytime she looked at Albedo since the incident, she felt a twinge of shame in her gut.

Albedo looked at her Lady with worry, "If you didn't do anything, then why are you sad?"

"Well…" Tiamat didn't know where to begin.

Albedo patiently waited for her to explain.

The Dragoness shuffled in her seat, "I-I think Shalltear's avoiding me."

"Shalltear?" she inquired.

Tiamat nodded her head, "Yes," she said quietly.

"Are you sure?" Albedo intoned softly.

"I don't know," she answered honestly. "I did chase her around though, and everytime I come close, she always leaves."

Albedo sighed, "I am not even surprised at this point."

Tiamat eyes sparkled with hope, "Do you actually know why she's been avoiding me?"

"I have an idea, but I'm not sure..." Albedo pondered. Was it perhaps because of the fight?

Albedo took a specific report from the table and gave it to Tiamat.

"Please read this," she said, and Tiamat hesitantly complied.

The report had no title, but when she skimmed the entire report, she noticed that it was about her battle with Shalltear.

The damage the battle had caused, the range of the area that was affected, and the possible impact it might have had on the neighboring countries.

The aftermath of the fight has been reported in many neighboring countries. Currently the place has become some sort of a human tourist spot, although no one has dared to approach the lava pit. It read.

"What does this have to do with Shalltear avoiding me?" she asked.

But Albedo remained quiet.

In the end, Albedo teleported away only to return shortly with the『Crystal Monitor』. Albedo set the flawless monitor right in front of the Dragoness and she clicking the crystal clear mirror.

It was the recording of her fight with Shalltear.

From the moment she summoned the Seraph Empyreans, to when she buffed herself and used 『Dimensional Lock』so that it was impossible for Shalltear to teleport away.

Her amethyst eyes never left the crystal, and somehow it brought her back to the battlefield.

The smell of burned ashes and trees. The smell of fire and sulphur.

Tiamat watched the fight in an aerial view so she could see both hers and Shalltear's movement.

When she watched as the Lance pierced her, at the same time she could feel the ghost pain in her abdomen, even if she was fully healed.

But that was nothing.

She remembered the smell of burning flesh. The acrid metallic smell.

It was something she would never forget.

The consumed muscle tissue emitted a fragrance like a meat on a griddle, and the fat burning with the muscle bore a scent like a side of greasy pork on the flame broil. The iron-rich blood still inside gave the smell of copper.

But that was not all.

When the fire consumed the skin, she remembered the charcoal like smell that produced a sulfurous scent.

The aroma was disgusting and sweet, foul and steaky, something similar to a calfskin being tanned over a fire.

The haunting smell of Shalltear's body being burned to crisps.

She almost vomited. At the same time, a primordial hunger stirred in her pits.

'_What the…?'_'

Tiamat angrily slapped herself out of her stupor. Her hands and cheeks burned from the sting, keeping her awake.

'_What the hell are you thinking! That's Shalltear you were burning! Not a chunk of… of… meat.'_

"Shalltear doesn't remember anything about the fight. That is why," Albedo's breath hitched when the screen showed the part where Tiamat was visibly struggling.

Just one more second and she could have been dead.

But then Pentakrisis swooped in.

"Demiurge had told Shalltear to watch this."

Tiamat gripped her hands together to keep them from shaking. Small tremors rocked her body every time she attacked Shalltear.

Her body quivered, and with great effort she forced herself to look away the moment where Shalltear was incinerated when she and Pentakrisis attacked her simultaneously.

When the recording ended, she couldn't help but want to weep.

The hot feeling in her eyes was threatening to explode, but she held herself back

Albedo wanted to comfort the Dragoness, but when she took a step forward, she saw the Dragoness's steely eyes.

It was at that moment where Tiamat came to a realization.

Shalltear was scared of her…

Tiamat raised both of her palms to her face and inhaled deeply.

'_Don't break down now, don't break down now, don't break down now…_'

But mere words could not eradicate the sorrow that splintered its way through her heart.

She was stunned by what she saw on the recording. The woman on the screen was no longer Hannah, but Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons.

She knew this from her head, but realizing it from her heart was on a whole other level.

She felt like a small child in comparison to the overwhelming power she waved around.

'_Power of a god._'

She took a deep breath, clearing away her sadness. Knowing her power was vastly different than seeing it first hand and actually comprehending it. For several moments, she couldn't turn away from the monitor that held all her feelings and resentment.

The fact that this power that she currently wielded harmed a member of her family had hurt. If this power caused even her own family to fear her, then she would gladly cast it away without a second thought.

Her hands moved slightly down and slapped her cheeks which surprised both Albedo.

"My-My Lady?"

Her cheeks were marked red from the sudden attack, and her eyes were steeled with resolve.

'_This is no place to be crying._'

Ainz was busy, and Albedo had waited for her for two weeks without any breaks. She would damn herself if she caused more trouble to the both of them.

The Succubus just stared at her in silence, until she replied. "I got it. Thank you for telling me."

"Shall we take a break, My Lady?"

"No. Let's continue on with our work. The faster we finish the better," And once again she concentrated fully on the stacks of reports in front of her.

"My Lady, I think we should take a break…" Albedo said, but sadly, her words fell on deaf ears. Albedo looked on helplessly as the Dragoness flipped past report after report. There was nothing she could do but let out a large sigh.

Even though Tiamat didn't say anything, she was far too easy for Albedo to read. It was clear from the Dragoness's expression that she was indeed sad about the whole incident.

Albedo looked at her Lady's focused form, and she finally came to a decision.

She would make things right.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

At this point, Tiamat already understood that there might be a chance that Shalltear hated her.

Who wouldn't after watching their own killer burn them to ashes?

She understood that emotional pain was far more difficult to handle as compared to any physical pain. Even though Shalltear might not have remembered what happened, it must have hurt to see that someone she trusted had actually killed her.

But she could not deny that it was depressing.

Tiamat felt somewhat disconnected to Shalltear, especially since they used to be so close; it was like someone had taken away a puzzle piece and threw it in a bottomless pit, making her feel incomplete.

Yet, there was nothing she could do but to respect Shalltear's decision.

That was why when Aureole Omega messaged her of Shalltear's location, she dismissed it completely, and thanked the Leader of the Pleiades before walking her way back to her room.

Tiamat walked down the corridor of the Ninth Floor, and once again she saw Shalltear exit the bar.

Out of habit, she opened her mouth to call her, but her name was suddenly stuck in her throat, and she decided to stay quiet.

Shalltear, who sensed the incoming Dragoness, ran away at the familiar soft scent of burning amber, but when she looked back to check whether Tiamat was following her, her eyes widened in shock.

With hurt clearly written on her expression, Tiamat took one final look at Shalltear before she tore her gaze away. She slowly walked in the opposite direction where Shalltear was running.

The Vampire was so used to having the Dragoness chase after her these past days, and unknowingly a void filled her heart when she saw the Supreme Being walk away.

But there was nothing she could do at this point.

Even so Shalltear stood her ground, actually waiting for the Dragoness to run towards her one more time.

She didn't.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

Tiamat emptily stared at the batter she was mixing.

She stirred and stirred and stirred, but her eyes remained empty.

"My Lady, should I put the seasoning in next?" Yuri asked her.

"Yes…" she answered soullessly.

Yuri felt apprehensive at her Lady's behaviour. It had been a week since she fell into despondency, and she did not know why.

The oldest of the Pleiades Maids decided to test Lady Tiamat.

Usually after this step, she had to preheat the oven and butter the mold.

"I think the next step after this is to decorate the cake, isn't that right My Lady?"

"...yes."

"Raw batter can be eaten right?"

"...yes."

"Dragon meat is delicious. Should we cook one of your babies?"

"...yes."

"Nabe-chan is pregnant with a human man."

"...ye—WHAT?"

"I was joking My Lady," Yuri said with a poker face.

"You're scaring me, Yuri…" Tiamat shuddered at the image of the doppelganger maid changing so drastically and breathed a sigh of relief. For _Narberal_ who thought that humans were lower than insects...

It was eerie to think about, like someone she knew was a different person altogether.

"Is there something wrong, My Lady?"

"N-Nothing," Tiamat gave Yuri a strained smile in response.

Yuri sighed. Lady Tiamat was too transparent with her emotions. Even someone as low leveled as Hamsuke could see that she was clearly distressed.

"You've been working at that batter for ten minutes My Lady. The cheesecake has lost all of its air…"

Tiamat looked down at the batter in her hand, "Ah, you're right...what a waste," she smiled at Yuri. She decided to continue cooking the failed cheesecake she made.

'_Stupid, stupid, stupid. Stop making other people worry about you!'_ she berated herself.

Tiamat knew that she was too expressive. She cared too much, and as a result her emotions were either too intense and she found herself shutting down completely, or being overwhelmingly, blatantly open.

"Did something happen My Lady? This is the third time you have done this today."

"Hm, there's nothing Yuri," Tiamat tried to smile from her eyes, putting on a confident mask. She knew this was what she was good at.

'_Hidehidehide, don't let your ugliness show.'_

But she knew from Yuri's eyes alone that she wasn't convinced. Yuri was giving her the look of her Therapist back on Earth who didn't believe a word of what she said.

'_Smile, be more convincing.'_

"I was thinking of a new recipe to cook," Tiamat lied to Yuri, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth as she unconsciously swallowed her saliva. "Sorry for making you worry Yuri. It won't happen again," she hummed a bit higher than usual and continued cooking.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

Using『Fly』, Ainz landed on the grassy plains at the entrance of Nazarick.

The stars were already out in the pure night sky.

He hadn't expected that the Adamantite quest would take so long. He had sent Naberal back to the Shining Golden Pavilion as he returned first to Nazarick.

Once again, he looked up at the dark sky. Even wreathed in shadows, Nazarick was still an object of beauty. Rather, the darkness gave it a mystical appearance.

From above, he could see Albedo waiting for him patiently.

"Welcome back, Ainz-sama," Albedo greeted him when he landed.

Ainz could only nod in reply. Even though he wasn't physically tired, he was busy juggling with two jobs. One being an Adventurer and the other as the leader of Nazarick.

Ainz sighed as both of them teleported to his office on the Ninth Floor, and immediately sought comfort in the sofa, leaning against the plush pillows.

Thinking back, he should've gone to the adventurer's guild together with Tiamat. Right now her name was boosted to the skies because of all her accomplishments, thus Ainz needed to make his persona on par with hers.

'_Didn't YGGDRASIL lore talk about dragons being lucky creatures? If only I got a bit of that my life would be much easier…_'

Ainz looked towards Albedo. "I am sorry to ask you to work this late, Albedo. For doing working overtime, you will be paid extra."

"There's no need, Ainz-sama. It is after all, my obligation as the Overseer of Nazarick."

Even though she said that sincerely, Ainz didn't change his mind. He would make sure to include her overtime payment on her monthly salary.

"Then, please give me your report."

Whenever Ainz left and returned to Nazarick, he would ask Albedo to report Tiamat's actions as per his order in the Throne Room.

In the current situation, he looked forward to the reports more than anything.

He recently found out that he was anticipating about what sorts of interesting things Tiamat was up to.

Seeing a chance to redeem herself, Albedo straightened up. "In the time Ainz-sama has been absent, Lady Tiamat had grown distressed."

"Distressed?" he immediately responded.

"Yes, it seems that Shalltear is avoiding Lady Tiamat. She did ask Aureola Omega to help her track down Shalltear but she escaped every time."

Ainz patiently listened to Albedo's report.

But one question hung in the air, and that was '_Why_?'

Why would Shalltear treat Tiamat so? Didn't they use to be close?

As if she was able to read the Overlord's mind, she responded, "Shalltear had recently visited the bar everyday, and though none of her work was affected, it seemed that she had received a lot of complaints from the frequent visitors of the bar, including Sous-Chef who was managing it. I presume that she was shocked about the fight with Lady Tiamat when Demiurge explained it to her."

"Regardless, I cannot allow this sort of behaviour."

"I agree. In a way, this also affects Lady Tiamat. Even though none of her work was affected, she was evidently slower and unfocused," Albedo hesitated for a moment. "Also…I'm worried about her."

Ainz thought about it briefly and finally came to a decision.

"I will be staying for a week to observe the situation."

"Understood, Ainz-sama. Thank you."

⊂((・▽・))⊃

The sun was just rising as Ainz entered his office only to find Tiamat already sitting there, waiting for both him and Albedo.

"Welcome back!" she smiled at Ainz.

Ainz carefully looked at her before nodding and taking a seat on his chair.

"I'm back Tia," he replied. "Did anything happen while I was away?"

"Nothing happened at all," she cheerfully replied, the smile not quite reaching her eyes.

Ainz silently looked at Tiamat.

The mask she had put on was indeed convincing. If he didn't receive the report from Albedo, there was no way he would've known.

"The twins are as cute as ever," she cooed. "Ah! I was also eating with Pandora's Actor in the Treasury, apparently he really likes cheesecake."

Tiamat was gleaming with life, like nothing was wrong.

But this was not what Ainz wanted to know.

"What about you? Did anything happen to you?"

Tiamat looked at Ainz, confused.

"To me?" she thought for a while, "Oh! I've been making a mess in the kitchen when you're not here, it seems that my two weeks of imprisonment had dulled my cooking abilities. But don't worry, I ate all of it!"

"...Right, that sounds interesting," Ainz replied. "But isn't there something else you'd like to tell me?"

"No...?"

Ainz wanted to hear what Albedo told him straight from Tiamat, but he guessed that wouldn't happen.

He sighed, "I received a report from Albedo, that you're facing some...troubles."

The sound of silence momentarily filled the entire room. If someone strained their ears, they would have heard the deafening sound of a pin dropping on the carpeted ground.

"Th-That's not true…" Tiamat looked away from his gaze, her cheerful expression faltering.

He knew though. No matter how hard she tried, she just wasn't a very good liar.

He hoped she would give up on her mask. He hoped that she would share her problems with him.

"Tia," he said tenderly, "As your friend and guildmaster, I feel the need to help you. So wouldn't it be fine for me to deal with all of this?"

He wanted to make all of her problems disappear. He wanted her to trust him more.

A surge of warmth flooded over her from the tips of her horns to the end of her tail. Even so, a sickening pit of guilt prevented her from being honest.

This was something she had to deal with on her own.

"Nope! There's no need for you to do anything," she smiled at him, a bit more brightly than before.

"Why not…?"

"Well, I'll be a lousy adult to rely on someone else to take care of my problems right?" she sheepishly said. "Th-therefore there is no need for you to comfort me."

Ainz's gaze remained fixed on her, but under the length of his robe, he clenched his fist.

It was bad enough that her voice was shaking, so why...

'_Why won't you rely on me?'_

"Tia, will you cease that already?" anger was bubbling up to his head.

Ainz's orbs seemed to _burn_.

"Regardless of how many times you say it, you're still putting on a mask. I know you," his voice steely with resolve.

"A-As I said, I'm a grown woman. I can handle my own problems."

Kind and gentle, but also hard-headed and stubborn.

Ainz thought that if he was the one who personally talked to her, she would at least inform him.

"Are you fine with continuing this? Things might escalate."

"That won't be a problem, I'm super strong after all!" she smiled, putting her hand on her bicep. "I don't need your help."

Those words smashed through his ribcage and pierced his absent heart. He had the urge to break the table in front of him to pieces.

"Fine. Have it your way then."

When Tiamat heard those words filled with pain, she called out to him.

"A-Ainz?"

"Please take a break, you deserve it. I need to focus and finish my work."

"Really?"

Ainz sighed, "Go. Before I changed my mind."

At the very thought of another break, Tiamat beamed, " I'll be going out then." she stood up from her chair and teleported to her room.

Albedo who was listening intently to their conversation finally spoke up, "Are you fine with that, Ainz-sama?"

Ainz covered his face with his hand, "What else can I do if she refuses my help? Holding out your hand to someone who refuses to take it is a waste of time," he said coldly. "There is no need to force someone to accept something they don't want."

But there was no way for Ainz to control this feeling of his.

He had plenty of people who refused his help both on Earth and in YGGDRASIL, and he had always just left it at that.

'_But why...why does it bother me so much?'_

Albedo wanted to sigh when she looked at her distressed Supreme Beings.

Why couldn't they just be honest with their feelings…

"Ainz-sama, I'm sorry for being impudent, but isn't Lady Tiamat special to you?"

Even though that question was came out of the blue, Ainz still answered Albedo's question earnestly.

"Well, she is the only guild member aside from me, so of course she is special."

"That was not what I meant…" Albedo drew in a deep breath.

She felt like she could lose her head talking back to the Supreme Being like this, especially when she was almost relieved from her position as the Overseer of Nazarick, but this was something that had to be said.

"I can see that Ainz-sama cherishes Lady Tiamat," she started softly. "I too, cherish her."

They loved her as much as she loved them.

Ainz stayed quiet, but acknowledged what Albedo had said.

"Then why did you ignore it all after she refused?"

Ainz couldn't help but to look away, gritting his teeth. "What else can I do? I had everything prepared to resolve the whole issue if she just asked, but she obstinately kept refusing."

Albedo could hear the veiled pain behind the annoyance in her Master's voice.

Bracing herself, she clenched her fist.

"I'm...I'm not like you, Ainz-sama," Albedo confessed. "For me, the very first time someone else is relying on me—as Albedo, not as the Overseer of Nazarick—is Lady Tiamat."

Albedo looked at Ainz's face, but it didn't show any sliver of expression whatsoever. However, from the flicker in his eyes, Albedo knew that he probably didn't expect her to spill her heart out to him.

She felt somewhat ashamed. Her behavior was unbefitting of the Overseer's position, but she carried on.

"She was concerned for me, and for all the Floor Guardians as individuals. She made me feel wanted, loved, and protected. I know that she cares. As hard as it is to have Lady Tiamat rely on me, I still feel happy."

Albedo took a deep breath.

"I apologize if I'm wrong, but…" Albedo looked the Supreme Being in the eye, suppressing the chill running down her spine, "Didn't you feel lonely when your precious person wouldn't rely on you?"

Ainz stopped moving.

'_Lonely...me? Because Tia wouldn't rely on me?'_

He doesn't know if could empathize with what Albedo said he felt towards Tiamat, but he knew the pain of having someone he cared about hurt and suddenly leaving him.

_His mother on the ground, unresponsive. Her life finally grinded to nothing by the world._

_His guildmates stopped logging on, one after another._

He didn't want that.

_Tiamat turned her back towards Nazarick, ignoring his outstretched hand._

He didn't want to leave any more regrets in his life.

He took a deep breath and steeled his resolve.

If Tiamat didn't want his help, he would help her nonetheless. That was why there was only one thing to do.

"Albedo,"

"Yes!"

"Would you mind helping me in my personal plan?"

Albedo smiled from ear to ear, "Of course! You can count on me, Ainz-sama!"

⊂((・▽・))⊃

_Glug glug glug, fuwaaah~_

Judging by the sound, the customer in question had just finished a drink in one gup.

As Sous-Chef cleared the wineglass, he thought that the customer in front of him was indeed bothersome.

Why couldn't she go to the social bar or the club on the Ninth Floor?

With a thump, the glass was slammed down on the counter. The Sous-Chef struggled against the anger which threatened to twist his featureless head.

"Give me _*hic* _another!"

The Myconid obliged, filling the glass one more time.

She raised the glass and downed it in one gulp, like she was polishing off milk after a hot bath.

"Don't you think you've had enough?"

"...No. I want more," she raised her glass up and the Myconid filled it again.

"I see."

Sous-Chef's irritation slowly built up as the Vampire in front of him continued chugging the drink.

Ever since she had come into the bar a few days ago, he knew that the Vampire couldn't get drunk. Afterall, it was impossible for an Undead that was immune to poison to get intoxicated by something as simple as alcohol.

That was why this person who couldn't get drunk was only diminishing the stocks in Nazarick; especially after the new policy the Supreme Being had implemented to limit the consumption of alcohol per person.

Since the location of Nazarick had changed, Lady Tiamat and Lord Ainz actually implemented a simple economic system in Nazarick where anyone could buy miscellaneous goods within Nazarick as long as they paid for it. Basic necessities remained free of course.

Later, the profit would go to the workers and the expenditures would mostly be simple ingredients to make alcohol and food.

It was a good system because they could obtain items even from outside of Nazarick at the right price, and right now the system was slowly circulating throughout the whole Ninth Floor.

Not that anything could be better than what Nazarick produced anyways.

Just as Sous-Chef wondered about the alcohol consumption of Shalltear alone, another person had come into the bar.

"Welcome."

"Sous-Chef," the person greeted.

Demiurge, his regular customer had entered the bar.

Usually, he sat on his chair at the corner of the room, but he walked towards Shalltear who thought she was _actually_ drunk.

Demiurge glanced at Shalltear whose head was lowered and seemingly muttering to herself.

"Shalltear," the demon casually greeted her.

Finally broken out of her fake stupor, the Vampire greeted him, "Ara, if it isn't Demiurge."

With a somewhat exaggerated motion, Demiurge raised his glasses.

"I came here to tell you that all the Floor Guardians have a meeting in the Throne Room in one hour."

"A meeting?"

"Yes, there is something we need to discuss for the future of Nazarick."

"I see," she nodded. "I got it, I'll be there."

Then he walked out of the bar.

Shalltear looked at him confusedly.

"Did he actually come here just to say that?"

In response to Shalltear's question, Sous-Chef just sighed.

⊂((・▽・))⊃

"I see that you're awake," Ainz gruffly called the Dragoness who was exiting his chamber.

She had slept in Ainz's room for two weeks now, so it wasn't unusual for him to see Tiamat every now and then.

Tiamat winced as she stretched her arms upwards.

As usual, she walked towards her chair, despite the fact that her body was heavily protesting against doing so.

"Yeah," she answered with a yawn. "Where's Albedo?"

Albedo who usually stood next to Ainz was nowhere to be seen.

"She had to attend a Floor Guardian meeting," he replied slowly. "There are some problems they need to discuss."

"Then shouldn't you attend too?" she asked curiously. Usually when the Floor Guardians were summoned to the Throne Room, it was because of Ainz's order or that he had something he needed to discuss with them.

She found it weird that the Floor Guardians suddenly decided to have a meeting by themselves.

"Actually, they were waiting for you," Ainz abruptly announced. "It seemed that the problem was related to the budgeting form you've created earlier. That was the form from your bakery right?"

"Y-Yes…" What in the world? When she reviewed the budgeting forms, everything seemed to be fine and Albedo didn't correct her either.

"I don't suppose you know how it could be linked to Nazarick's standards?" he asked dryly. "The Budgeting Form you made doesn't fit with the current Nazarick which causes a lot of confusion for each floor. That's why they're having a meeting right now."

Tiamat nodded in understanding, "You're probably right," she agreed.

The current Nazarick was about the size of a huge corporation. Since the budgeting form was made to handle the necessities of a small bakery, it probably wasn't enough to envelop _all_ of Nazarick.

At that time she received two beeps of 『Message』.

[Yes?]

[Lady Tiamat, you're awake?]

[I am, Albedo. I heard that you guys are having problems with the budgeting form?]

[Yes, My Lady.]

[I'll be there.]

Another two beeps signaled that the『Message』had ended.

"It seems that I have to go to the Throne Room," Tiamat turned to look at Ainz. "I'll tell you about it as soon as I'm finished."

Ainz nodded.

With a simple tap on her ring, she watched as the surroundings blurred into the familiar dark room, only illuminated by the light of a single chandelier.

Tiamat expected the Floor Guardians to be there, but she was surprised when she only saw one person.

"L-Lady Tiamat…" the lone figure said in a familiar voice she finally heard after so long.

When Tiamat heard that voice, it was like a dam broke. She couldn't stop her heart from being torn apart. A trickle of blood ran down her lip as she bit it.

The more she wanted to avoid the thought of that person, the more thoughts of her popped into her mind. Sometimes she wanted to cry out loud and sometimes she felt like sitting quietly, recalling those carefree moments.

Even cooking didn't excite her anymore.

The feeling of loss expanded and expanded.

And she knew it was her own fault.

"Shalltear…"

As she predicted, Shalltear bolted to the double doors, and when she did so, Tiamat felt like hell had boiled over.

The soul wrenching moments always began as soon as Shalltear turned away from her. There was nothing Tiamat could do as a fog of depression blanketed her mind, dragging her into an empty void.

When Shalltear was about to rip the door open, she stumbled—even Tiamat was shocked—because the door wouldn't open.

They were trapped together inside one room.

Immediately, the Dragoness's thoughts went back to her previous conversation with Ainz.

'_Ainz must have planned this…_' Tiamat realized.

"Damn it!" Shalltear unexpectedly screamed at the door, and as if a lightbulb went on in her head, the Vampire seethed in disdain. "Demiurge…"

Even after knowing the reality of what was happening, Shalltear didn't even turn her body to look at Tiamat.

'_She must really hate me…_'

Tiamat took a step forward.

She hesitated.

'_If Shalltear doesn't want to talk, then I shouldn't force her to,_' she argued to herself.

Shalltear stopped trying to open the door and turned around with a wary expression on her face.

It crushed Tiamat to see such an expression towards her on someone she considered her child.

'_I have to at least try. Things will never get better if I don't do at least that,_' she took a deep breath in and slowly walked up to Shalltear who quickly lowered her head.

Unable to continue holding in her feelings, the Dragoness began.

"Shalltear," she said softly. "I'm sorry…"

Tiamat couldn't see Shalltear's expression, but she could see that the Vampire flinched at those words.

"I'm sorry I hurt you. I-I'm sorry that you were hurt by my actions," her voice cracked. "I understand if you hate me for it."

The Vampire trembled.

"I don't expect you to forgive me," Tiamat continued, "and that's fine. After this, I'll keep my distance from you if that's what you want."

There was no response.

"Since this will be the last time, I just want you to know that whatever happens in the future, whatever you decide, my feelings won't change. I will always, _always_, love you and protect—" she stopped herself.

'_Tiamat, you hypocrite,_' she scolded herself. '_What a joke. Saying that you'll protect her when you killed her with your own hands. You have no right to say those words._'

"If you want, you can pierce me with your lance as an equal measure."

Shalltear immediately turned around.

"Lady Tiamat you are an _idiot_!" she screamed out.

Tiamat flinched at the sudden reply, but when she finally looked at Shalltear, her eyes widened in surprise.

Tears filled Shalltear's eyes as they fell down in fat droplets.

"S-Shal—"

"Do you think it's because I'm hurt that I want you to get hurt? Does it seem like I'm someone that heartless?!" Shalltear shouted out, "I don't want the people I care about to suffer like me!"

"Shalltear...I-I'm so—"

"Don't throw your pity at me!" Shalltear cut her off, "Why would you judge me like that!"

Tiamat stayed quiet, as she tried to hold back her tears.

"Yes, you're right, I'm angry. But not because I want to torture you, you stupid Dragon! I'm angry at myself!" she screamed out. "Idiot, idiot, you idiot!"

Tiamat immediately smothered Shalltear in a hug.

"I'm sorry, Shalltear. I-I'm very sorry..."

"Uu...Uwaaaaaaaa…" Shalltear who held herself back finally succumbed to the Dragoness and cried out loud. "I-I'm sorry for hurting you My Lady!"

"Me too, Shalltear. Me too…"

The other Floor Guardians who were listening outside the door smiled in relief.

* * *

**Canon Omake: Behind the door**

* * *

Outside the door to the Throne Room, Albedo, Demiurge, Cocytus, Aura, and Mare stood leaning their weight against the door.

When the maids walked past them, they wondered what they were doing.

The Homunculi Maids jumped in surprise when a large force on the other side of the door tried to push the door open, and they immediately fled the scene.

The Floor Guardians pushed on the door with all their might.

"『G-Greater Full Potential』, 『D-Draconic Power』, 『G-Greater Physical Boost』!" Mare casted his buffs on all of the Floor Guardians who were trying to keep Shalltear inside.

Green light enveloped them, and as the surge of power travelled throughout their whole bodies, they felt like they had more than enough strength to push back the door.

"Shalltear. Is. Strong." Cocytus huffed, all of his limbs were occupied as he tried to keep the door shut.

"Just a little bit more," Demiurge panted, his shoulder straining against the door, strands of hair sticking to his sweating forehead, ruining his perfectly styled hair, "I already casted 『Dimensional Lock』so it's impossible for her to teleport away from the Throne Room."

Another bang could be heard from behind the door.

"Let me out, let me out, let me out right now!"

Once Mare had finished casting his buffs, he immediately joined his sister, pushing the door with his whole back while Aura pushed the door with her hands.

"Just when will Lady Tiamat come anyway?!" Aura asked impatiently.

Albedo who also pushed the door with her whole body answered, "Any minute now! So don't you dare give up!"

Another bang opened the door by a sliver, but as soon as it opened, it slammed shut immediately.

"T-This is for the sake of our Supreme Being!" Albedo screamed out.

"**Hai!**" they shouted simultaneously.

* * *

**Omake: Aftermath**

* * *

When Shalltear returned back to her room, she immediately dropped to her knees in chagrin.

"_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_"

The Vampire Brides who were on standby immediately approached their Master, shocked by what they had just witnessed.

"Is there something wrong, Master?" one of them worriedly asked.

Shalltear covered her face with both of her hands, so they couldn't see her expression, but they could still see that her ears were burning red.

"I can't believe I was so casual to Lady Tiamat! I even called her stupid!" Shalltear confessed. "This is unacceptable for Floor Guardian. Idiot! I'm such an idiot!"

However, the Vampire Brides didn't understand a word she was saying. Therefore they remained quiet and stayed by her side instead.

"I'm sure Lady Tiamat won't mind," one of them said.

"Yes, Lady Tiamat is known to be kind and generous."

As soon as they said that, Shalltear wept even more.

"_Exactly_! The fact that Lady Tiamat was probably happy that I was dropping all honorifics is making me feel even more guilty!"

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

"Shortstack, you there?"

"C-Chibi...?"

"I-It's good that they finally reconciled, i-isn't it onee-san?"

Aura sighed, "They should've done that from the beginning," putting both of her hands behind her head and waited for Shalltear to come out from her room.

Shalltear finally opened the door.

"What do you want, Chibi?" she scowled.

Aura grinned.

"_Lady Tiamat you idiot! Uu, Uwaaaaaaaa~!_" the older of the dark elf twins mocked.

Shalltear slammed the door in her face.

"D-Do you have to do that, o-onee-san?"

The sound of Shalltear wailing behind the door made Aura grin even harder.

"Worth it."

* * *

**A/N: If any of you guys want to make curry, I included the recipe and steps in this chapter, so go wild. This is a very difficult part to write about. One of the hardest after the fight with Shalltear. HOLY SHIT 200 REVIEWS YO WE ARE ON A ROLL! Thank you everyone! Hugs and Kisses!**

**Discord: **'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (colon) (slash) (slash) **d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range **r**efreshing **d**rink . **gg **(slash) JUejk8J

**Chapter 19 is already published on Discord ****v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v**

**Hackslashbash: Shalltear playing hide and go seek. Nice. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

* * *

**Reply to reviews**

* * *

**Reza0807: We have accepted your request. Please anticipate the upcoming chapters on that :)**

**Lion King (guest): Yes he did! LMFAO!**

**LilHam: We will not be going down the Gazef route, but we'll have him play a big role in later chapters. No, we're not going to kill him off. We'll also try to implement your omake idea in future chapters. Thank you for the tip on honorifics by the way, that was definitely a mess up on our parts. [ imaweeaboo: I can always make an omake about Gazef x Tiamat, but it won't be canon… Bone dada is our priority]**


	19. Chapter 19: Free Will

**17 September 2019: **

**Author Note:**

Sometimes I wonder, is it alright for me to write a story like this? Would I ruin people's expectation of the story? Is it my rightful place to even write one? Am I allowed to do so?

Considering what this story has been through in the beginning, I thought to myself, "Just drop it." or "You're wasting your time."

I thought I wasn't allowed to write this story. The plot is just too massive for me to understand, or that the readers already liked certain types of stories.

There is no point in me writing this story. What would I gain? _Absolutely nothing._

So why do I keep posting? Why do I keep coming back even though it's such a _massive waste of time?_

This is because I am not writing for the sake of my readers nor because there is some message I wanted to send to you.

I am just projecting my own aspirations onto the page.

This is what I want.

This is what I want it to be.

Why was I so worried about what others would think?

Writing this story is one of the things I do _for_ _myself._

I understand that being 'new' is a great identity, and there are plenty of people who crave for it. Once you have managed to do that, I am well aware that you can bridge those who have no interest in the story and those who absolutely live and die for it.

But I don't desire that.

I don't want to be a great writer.

I just want to be me.

And that is absolutely okay.

* * *

**20 September 2019: **This is an **AU, SI-OC fanfic**. **If you don't know what that means, then perhaps another fanfic can better suit your taste. **

Also, I would like to mention that I've never received so much overwhelming support. I didn't know that this story was beloved so much by the readers but I know that now because of your reviews, _thank you. _Truly, from the bottom of my heart.

**I would like to explain why I published the A/N like so. If you aren't interested, then please go ahead and skip this part**, but I feel like there are some things that need to be addressed.

When I first started writing, as you can see in the reviews, it was _littered_ with so many flames, which I received with an open mind. I even encourage them to send it because of how _idiotic_ they sounded, especially after I proved them wrong that they litterally just stopped.

Long story short, I got fed up.

Especially with reviews that were just nitpicking every little thing from the story. They only _criticize _without telling me how I can improve it.

**I am human too, I am just as vulnerable as you are.**

I cannot tell you how many chapters I have thoroughly enjoyed writing that were then completely wrecked by someone tainting them with meanness. _I can't even look back and read my own creation_.

I worked hard on them, I was proud of them, and I wanted to enjoy them.

This is something that I always told _hackslashbash _in private: "I am traumatized of reading the reviews to my story."

Everytime a review came into my email, I always thought they were _flames_. The only reason that I didn't turn off the notification is only because of the _positive encouragement_ I have received over the past few months.

With that being said, the A/N I published before is a _**declaration of war**_**.**

I will continue writing what I want together with my co-author _hackslashbash_. **There is no need for me or my co-author to justify our story to** _**you**_** who always criticize without helping**. If you want to continue reading then go ahead, and if you don't, well, then don't.

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal - Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth - (i.e. Player Written Fanfiction)**

**Chapter I: Tiny Youngling**

The Baleful Dragon Nidhogg was born immortal, but despite his already impressive might, he desired even more power. In the cold depths of Niflheim, the treacherous Dragon hatched his schemes. From the ashes of Lava that brought life, and the fruit from the World Tree that he ate, Dragons were born.

Amongst the enormous brood of the Traitor Dragon, there was Tiamat, a tiny youngling, smaller and weaker than her siblings. While her siblings flew and fought, she stayed behind. But one thing was certain.

Her scales were tougher than any of her siblings, almost impenetrable.

Of course, since most Dragons were born strong, they did not pay any heed to this fact.

What they didn't realize, was that out of all her siblings, the weak and tiny Tiamat survived every battle, growing stronger and stronger in ways they have never imagined.

Her scales grew harder and harder with each desperate struggle, forged into an armor that could stand against the very gods with the fires of combat.

As eons passed, the young dragon finally gained access to the most sacred of elements: fire. For fire birthed the mightiest beings into existence, and with fire, would the Nine Realms know the wrath of the Black Wyrm.

Though fire was the birthright of all the progenitor dragons, Tiamat's flames were special even among her broodmates. It was a searing divine flame that was almost golden in color, a fire so hot that even the souls of her victims burned in its everlasting glow.

Thus began the saga of the Weakest Dragon in YGGDRASIL

* * *

**Chapter 19: Free Will**

* * *

The Adventurer's Guild was bustling with life.

However, there was one thing that was different.

Everyone was gossiping about the same thing.

The Hissing Vipers who were sitting at one of the tables resting could hear the whispers.

"It seems that Hannah-sama has gathered a lot of admirers," Antonios sighed, resting his head against the wooden table.

"This was to be expected," Borg nonchalantly replied. "Especially after the Vampire Incident a month ago."

Antonios sighed yet again, and turned his head to look at the notice board.

Right now the Hissing Vipers were currently waiting for a potential client. Of course there were jobs on the notice board that they could do, however, there were so few quests to begin with and none of them were within their range of expertise.

Since their team consisted of mainly swordsmen, they could only take a limited number of quests.

Things like espionage or subduing a monster that wielded magic were merely small examples of what they were incapable of doing.

"Hannah-sama, huh…"

When Antonios first heard the news, he thought they were insane.

A month ago, Hannah, the Silver Priestess—an Adamantite—together with Dark Warrior Momon and Kralga—both Mythril adventurers—went to subjugate an undead monster that was categorized as a Vampire by the guild.

He wanted to help obviously, but Borg stopped him after the tremors were heard all the way to E-Rantel. That was why he was not surprised to have heard that Kralga had been annihilated in the crossfire.

There weren't even any remains of their ashes.

The land was scorched black and had been reduced to a smoldering lava field. It was startling to see it with his own eyes when he took a detour to see the battlefield for himself.

The most surprising thing was that apparently Hannah-sama and Momon-san were rumored to have come from the same country, possibly explaining why they were so strong.

Rumors about the two spread like wildfire.

"I heard that she was a Princess from that country who ran away and is hiding as an adventurer because she was dethroned. Momon was her personal guard."

"No, that's not possible. Have you seen the two of them together before? Their timing doesn't match up. If what you're saying is true, wouldn't they have registered together?"

"I also heard that she had to beg her goddess to release her holy seals to defeat that Vampire."

"Why?"

"Are you stupid? Someone who almost bit the dust after defeating the Pandemonium couldn't possibly beat that Vampire."

"You weren't even there during the incident! The scene was magnificent, so don't you dare say that about our Saint!"

"Not only that, but my friend who was working at the temple said that the Priests there were enraged that Hannah-san had healed us all after the Pandemonium."

"Amazing, as expected of the Silver Priestess…"

Those were the pieces of gossip that had been spreading around the past month.

Afterall, they were the only two who had returned safely after that battle and seized victory.

While Hannah-sama received positive responses, most of the Adventurers in the guild had mixed opinions regarding Momon-san; they thought that he was some rich boy trying to play hero. Funny to think that they used to think the same thing about Hannah-sama.

But now they knew that Momon was someone powerful enough to compel respect from them.

Just as he was fantasizing about when he would reach their pinnacle of strength, he heard the sound of the door opening. Almost immediately, a wave of commotion swept through the guild like an open fire catching the wind.

As soon as Antonios turned his head around, he understood the reason for the disturbance as he worshipfully gazed at the person that was on his mind the entire time.

It was Hannah Annafelowz, the Silver Priestess. The Saint of E-Rantel.

"Hannah-sama!" Antonios said out loud, shooting to his feet at just a glance of the slightest strand of her hair.

"Antonios-san," she returned the greeting.

After she and Momon had returned from the battle, everyone saw the heavily damaged high-end full plate armor and holes and burn and claw marks on her tattered dress. When they had finished their business in the guild, Momon-san was taken away to the Magician's Guild to repair his armor while Hannah-sama was taken by Paolo, the best tailor in E-Rantel, who insisted on making her a new dress.

Although he couldn't pinpoint anything different with her new dress aside from the style that he was much more familiar with, his attention was drawn more to the staff she was carrying with her.

Her staff glittered under the rays of sun, a sheen that only an artifact of pure Adamantite could emit. The new staff was the result of the combined efforts of every magic caster in the Magician's Guild coming together to repair it.

At her hips hung a metal plate that belonged to living legends, objects of worship amongst adventurers. They were the trump cards of humanity that would protect them from being ravaged by the powerful races of the world, an adamantite plate.

There was also gossip that the Guild wanted to give her and Momon-san a new rank, but because humanity hadn't found a metal stronger than Adamantite, the plan was put on hold.

But everybody knew that when that time came, those two would be the first ones to receive it.

Afterall, her accomplishments had surpassed even Adamantine, and there had never been one of those in E-Rantel before.

"Oi is that…?"

"The rumors were right, she is indeed a beauty."

"The Kingdom's Adamantite Soloist."

"They said she burned down the forest with Seventh Tier magic…!"

"No way! Doesn't that mean she's passed the pinnacle of humanity?"

"Well, Adamantite Adventurers are the type of people who could do it right? To be honest, I wasn't surprised to hear that the guild is considering a new rank higher than Adamantite for her and the Dark Warrior."

"Who's that behind her?"

The new individual stirred the guild into even more of a frenzy.

"Hannah-sama, who is that?" Antonios asked, pointing at the person behind her.

At his question, the rest of the curious adventurers gave Antonios a thumbs up.

This time she wasn't alone.

A beautiful maiden with glasses followed closely behind her, already receiving adoring looks from the rest of the Adventurers. She wore a simple white dress almost similar to a nightgown tied together with a brown leather corset, completed with a blue choker and ribbon on the low cropped bun at the back of her head.

"Ah! This is ...uh... Lily," Hannah introduced her to Antonios, "My...disciple."

"You must be Antonios-san," Yuri bowed with impeccably, manners befitting those of a noble's daughter. "It is nice to finally meet you. My Lady had told me a lot about you."

Tiamat gave Yuri a slight nudge.

"I told you not to address me like that!" she spoke to Yuri in hushed whispers. "There's no need for formalities here, Lily."

"B-But still…"

The rest of the Adventurers didn't fail to hear those whispers.

"It seems that the rumors were true..."

"Right, I told you she's a Princess!"

The gossips once again burned Tiamat's face. Feeling a bit shy from the completely exaggerated rumors, she turned to Antonios.

"If you'll excuse us, Antonios-san."

"Oh, of course Hannah-sama!" he stood to the side, making way for the Silver Priestess and her newly disciple.

They nonchalantly walked to the receptionist.

"Good morning," Tiamat greeted the receptionist as usual.

"Good morning, Hannah-sama," the receptionist replied with a smile, "I'm sorry to say but Dark Warrior, Momon-sama had taken all the quests, so there's no more work left. I am very sorry," the receptionist rose to her feet and bowed deeply to her.

"That's alright. I just want to register her into the Adventurer's Guild," Tiamat said to the receptionist, casually putting her hand on Yuri's shoulder.

"Certainly. I am sure you already know the procedure."

Tiamat nodded, and put five silver coins on the table, writing Yuri's fake name in the Adventurer's book before receiving a copper plate in her stead.

"Thank you," Tiamat sincerely thanked the receptionist.

"It is us who should be grateful, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat nodded and turned, her dress billowing with her gentle movements as she walked away with Yuri tailing behind her.

"Antonios-san, we'll be leaving first. See you later," she waved before she walked out of the door.

Antonios could only wave his hand with a dumb smile on his face.

The rest of the Adventurers clicked their tongue at Antonios.

"You lucky bastard."

The man only sheepishly grinned in response.

ᕦ( ✿ ⊙ ͜ʖ ⊙ ✿ )━ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ

Yuri had a spring in her steps as she followed Lady Tiamat out of the Adventurer's Guild.

She was happy that she finally had her wish fulfilled; her wish to protect the Supreme Being.

'_Finally,_' Yuri fist pumped, '_I can finally brag to Narberal!_'

Tiamat looked at Yuri with a smile on her face. It was rare for the mature maid to act so out of character.

"Are you that happy?"

"Of course, My—" the Dullahan corrected herself. "Hannah-sama."

The Dragoness eyes twitched, it sounded as if Yuri had a lisp.

"You can drop the _sama_, Lily..."

Yuri gasped, "How could I? That would be disrespectful towards you M—Hannah-sama."

"Well, at least you're consistent…" Tiamat sighed, deciding to let the matter go. "By the way," Tiamat leaned closer to Yuri's ear to whisper something. "We need to go to the blacksmith to get your gauntlets."

"Why can't I use my usual ones?"

"The quality of Nazarick's items are simply too high. At most, the usual level of equipment here is level twenty to thirty at the highest. Plus, if the people here found out that the equipment is not something of their standard, we could be investigated!"

Yuri nodded in understanding.

They were walking down the streets whispering to one another.

The bystanders who watched them interact could only watch in confusion.

'_Just what are they doing?_'

Some of them who were close enough to eavesdrop could hear some words like, "Quality...too high...investigated."

That was how they drew their own conclusions.

'_The Silver Priestess finally got a disciple because she was about to get punished by her Goddess for breaking the seal. The Disciple is not her Disciple but some sort of Guard to manage her._'

Another ridiculous piece of gossip weaved its way throughout E-Rantel once more.

The stares from the bystanders were getting more intense by the minute.

"Hannah-sama, is indeed amazing…" Yuri said to Tiamat.

"How so?"

"For you to receive their uncomfortable gazes without flinching...truly you are a force to be reckoned with." Yuri said, raising her voice by a notch.

Immediately, the bystanders looked away in shame.

"L-Lily!" Tiamat covered the Dullahan's mouth with the palm of her hand. "You're too loud, they can hear what you're saying you know," she whispered.

"Eh? But that's the point…" Yuri looked at the Goddess as if it was obvious. "For them to so easily dare to lay their eyes upon your figure is unforgivable!"

Yuri gave the man who walked near her a death stare, and he fearfully turned away to walk in the opposite direction.

Tiamat sighed, clutching her forehead as a headache started to grow.

"I wanna go home…" she cried to no one in particular.

ᕦ( ✿ ⊙ ͜ʖ ⊙ ✿ )━ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ

The sound of the bell chiming against the wooden door signalled that he got a customer.

He didn't look up from where he was currently sitting, and continued wiping the grime away from one of the weapons that he was going to display.

A named Gold Adventurer had made an appointment with him because he had created a masterpiece.

Two women were chattering as they went inside the display room.

"Welcome," he said plainly. He had next to no desire to entertain mere _female _Adventurers.

He almost clicked his tongue in annoyance as he reminded himself that they were customers.

They should just stay at home and take care of the children. He couldn't understand why weak creatures like them would take such a dangerous job.

None of the female adventurers were as strong as the male adventurers afterall. Their build was simply too different. Since males were stronger and much more durable compared to females, it was obvious who would be better suited for the rough life of adventuring. True, female adventurers were typically quicker. But still, if he had to choose between being quick or being able to hit hard, he would _obviously_ choose the latter.

Sometimes their bodies were marred with scars. Scars that even the temples couldn't heal, and it saddened him because he was always reminded of his newborn baby.

He promised himself that he would strictly raise her and make sure she won't ever need to become an adventurer!

The two female adventurers seemed to be frolicking around looking for a suitable weapon, but he couldn't care less. As long as they were able to pay what they bought and quickly get the fuck out of his store.

"Excuse me," asked one of them softly, definitely a woman's voice, he noted. But still, he did not raise his head. "We are looking for a gauntlet."

"Goddamn it woman, can't you find them with your own eyes!" he raised his voice in annoyance.

This time a different voice replied to him. "How dare you—" she seethed.

But the first one who approached him stopped her from saying anything more. "Y—Lily, it's alright," she said, calming down her friend.

He sighed angrily, "Why do you need a gauntlet anyways? It's not like you're actually strong enough to use it."

"It doesn't matter," she softly continued, undeterred by his inhospitality. "We want to buy your best gauntlet."

"Tch, I don't sell any of my precious weapons to you _female adventurers_," he fumed as the last two words were filled with absolute disdain. "So you can just fuck o—"

He raised his head and immediately went silent.

Since he was a blacksmith, the first thing he noticed was the staff she was holding. Adamantite coated the entire staff as a blue orb lay on top of it, floating through some mystic means. That staff was a Masterpiece; he acknowledged whoever had made it.

His brain immediately went into overdrive.

There was only one person who owned that staff.

His pupils slowly travelled to the silver hair, just like what they said, the delicate color of the moonlight shone through her, and her amethyst eyes that pierced through his soul and found him wanting.

In front of him was Hannah Annafelowz, the Adamantite_ female adventurer_ in E-Rantel.

And he had belittled her.

"H-Ha-Ha-Hannah-s-sa-sa—" he was so shocked that his lips couldn't even utter her name correctly.

Tiamat looked at him as understanding crossed her features.

She understood very clearly that it was hard for female adventurers to slot through the ranks since they were physically different from the male adventurers. They were slowly gaining popularity because of the ascension of Blue Rose, the strongest group of adventurers in the Kingdom who happened to be all-female.

If it wasn't for them, there would be no more female adventurers registering with the Guild.

"Ah," Tiamat smiled at him, "Is this an exclusive store for male adventurers? There weren't any warning signs outside the door, so we didn't know. We're really sorry about that."

Tiamat turned back and dragged Yuri away.

She didn't want a fight to break out. After all there were a lot of blacksmith shops in E-Rantel. It really was a shame though, because she had heard from the Hissing Vipers that this was the best blacksmith shop there was.

"Let's find another place, Lily."

"Yes, Hannah-sama."

"W-W-Wait!" he screamed out, desperation edging into his voice. "Y-You want gauntlets right? I sell the best weapons in E-Rantel. There's no better blacksmith here than me!"

They stopped, one foot out the door.

"What do you think, Lily?" Tiamat asked.

"Hmph," Yuri looked away from the man in front of her. "There is no need to waste your money at a store who is incapable of properly greeting you, Hannah-sama."

"Maa," Tiamat waved her hand, "We could see what he offers us and if you don't like it we could leave, how about that?"

To be honest, Tiamat didn't want to leave the store. She wanted to see what kind of weapons the best blacksmith in E-Rantel was capable of producing.

He saw this as an opportunity, "Yes, you won't be disappointed!" he ran to the backroom and found the best pair of gauntlets he had. "What about this, Hannah-sama? This Gauntlet is coated with gold, at the cost of 15 gold coins. But since this is the first time you came here, I will give you a 50% discount."

"Uhm," Tiamat sheepishly smiled at him, "I'm not the one buying it…"

"If it's not you, then…" he looked to her left, and the lady in spectacles was frowning.

"My, can I really use that, Hannah-sama?" Yuri asked smugly. "He said that I'm not strong enough to use it after all."

"Then why don't you give it a try?" Tiamat suggested, she had seen movies where people swung a sword a few times before buying them. Perhaps Yuri could do the same?

"E-Eh…" the blacksmith couldn't even stutter out a reply.

"Is it okay if we try it out first?" Tiamat asked him.

Before he knew it, he was nodding enthusiastically, but his heart wept. "O-Of course you can."

Yuri grabbed the golden gauntlet from the blacksmith's hand, and tried it on. Since the gloved gauntlet was designed for a male to use, it was hanging off Yuri's wrists.

"It seems that the gauntlet is too big…" Tiamat commented.

"N-No, it's alright Hannah-sama. We can always adjust the gauntlet for the Lady later on."

"I see!" Tiamat looked at Yuri excitedly. Since Tiamat's build was incapable of wielding most weapons—and because there were no weapons that visually appealed to her in YGGDRASIL—she decided not to use them.

But she couldn't deny that it was thrilling to be shopping for something Yuri was going to use in the future.

"Try it out, Lily!" the Dragoness urged her.

"But there is no target, Hannah-sama," Yuri said with a poker face.

"Hm…"Tiamat decided to give it some thought, "Then punch me instead!"

Both Yuri and the blacksmith looked at the Silver Priestess in disbelief.

"Nononononononono! That would be an insult, My L—Hannah-sama!" Yuri frantically waved her hands in front of her, horrified by the idea.

If one of the Eight-Edged Assassins reported this to Ainz-sama, Yuri would get scolded!

"Ehh~ its fine, its fine!"

'_NO, IT'S DEFINITELY NOT FINE, MY LADY!_' Yuri wanted to scream out.

Tiamat stood in front of Yuri at a close enough range that if Yuri swung her arms, the Dragoness would definitely get hit.

"Come on, come on!" Tiamat urged.

Unable to refuse, Yuri slowly swung her right hand and lightly hit Tiamat.

_Poof..._ the sound of the gauntlet softly hitting her in the shoulder.

"I think you can do better than that..."

"M-My L—H-Ha-Hannah-sama," Yuri's head seemed to spin. "I CAN'T. I'LL DEFINITELY BE SCOLDED!"

"You can do it, Yuri! I believe in you!" Tiamat encouraged her.

Tiamat's smile was so bright and so happy, causing Yuri to nearly cry in frustration.

But since Yuri was still trembling in place, Tiamat decided to try out a different strategy.

"Lily…" the Dragoness's voice turned cold. "If you don't punch me, I'll ask Nabe-chan to accompany me instead."

At that threat, Yuri's glasses glinted.

"Oho…" the Dullahan let out a strained smile, Lady Tiamat sure knew how to push her buttons, "Is that so Hannah-sama? Then please take responsibility if I get scolded later on."

"Ok," Tiamat said cheerfully.

"Then, here I go." Yuri prepared her stance.

While Lady Tiamat was working on paperwork, she had secretly trained with her sisters on the breathing exercises Ainz-sama himself had created.

"Do your best," Tiamat replied.

Yuri lowered her knees down to a squat. Her left knee forward and the right leg was pulled back as she put her right hand down to her waist.

She took a deep breath, "Ka…"

The air seemed to be thick with tension.

"Me…"

The blacksmith was sweating in places he didn't know could excrete sweat.

"Ha…"

Yuri pulled back her hand even more, and the blacksmith could see the veins on her arms.

"Me…"

Tiamat prepared herself.

"**HAAAAAAAAAAAA!**"

This was what Mister Blacksmith saw.

The wind formed from a mere swing of the spectacled lady roared as loud as thunder and shattered his windows. It blew away all of the weapons on display, which created a deafening clatter as they fell to the ground. The rolling wind even lifted the heaviest weapons and armor with ease out the window.

Her fist hit the Priestess with the sound of a roaring thunderstorm.

The impact caused his doors to be blown wide open and broken beyond repair, glass shards were everywhere, and everything, _everything_ was turned upside down.

Despite that, the Silver Priestess was unscathed.

Then, the gauntlet did something that shouldn't have been possible.

It broke into pieces like his glass window.

"Ah, it broke," Yuri simply said.

"The gauntlet was not as strong as I thought it was…" Tiamat pouted, clearly disappointed by the turn of events.

"That shouldn't be possible, y-you…" The gawking blacksmith pointed his finger at Yuri. "You're just a woman! So how…"

He looked at his broken store one more time, before fainting, foam forming at his mouth.

Ever since that day, he promised himself that he wouldn't ever underestimate female adventurers again.

Tiamat called out the people at the temple and paid for his medical expenses as well as the cost to repair his store.

Both her and Yuri agreed, that there was no need to buy a gauntlet with that kind of quality, and decided to stick to Yuri's original gauntlets. But she could only wear them on quests.

After this incident had come to light, the Guild immediately gave Yuri a gold adventurer plate.

Funnily enough, Tiamat later found out that the gold plate was made from the gauntlet Yuri had previously destroyed.

ᕦ( ✿ ⊙ ͜ʖ ⊙ ✿ )━ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ

Tiamat and Ainz were sitting together in the common room, and in front of them was a 『Mirror of Remote Viewing』.

The two were sitting on sofas opposite to each other, but their eyes were glued to what they were seeing.

Throughout the entire fight, Ainz had controlled the Mirror in the direction he wanted to go, and Tiamat just watched intently, like a kid watching a cinematic movie while munching on popcorn.

"I have to say," Tiamat admitted to Ainz, "They are _really_ adorable."

Ainz's tone betrayed his amusement.

"How could you even think about that right now…"

On the mirror, the two watched as the lich Ainz had created wreaked havoc on the lizardmen lines.

They watched as what seemed to be the strongest among the lizardmen regroup and assault the lich, supported by Swamp Elementals the albino one had summoned.

They watched as the lizardmen heroes struggled against the lich until the relentlessness of a hydra gave them the opening they needed.

Finally, they watched as the lizardman bearing the ice weapon slayed the lich, roaring over the body of his undead foe.

"Not bad," Ainz hummed.

"I think it's the dragon in me, but they look absolutely adorable! They look like itty-bitty dragons. That white one is especially pretty," but then she frowned. "They hadn't done anything wrong yet after all..."

"They're an isolated group. If they end up getting completely exterminated, no one would be able to trace it back to us," Ainz waved at what she had said and returned his gaze back to the screen.

Tiamat looked at the screen intently, and without realizing, she mumbled to Ainz.

"I didn't expect you to be so mean towards Cocytus..."

Ainz just looked at her.

"I mean, even I could see that this battle was impossible to win. Not only have they managed to combine their tribes in just a week, their fighting spirit was increased by tenfold. You knew about all this, yet you limited Cocytus to a really weak army. Why is that?" she asked.

Ainz who was sitting on the sofa, leaned back against the plush pillows, getting more comfortable. This was going to be long explanation.

"You haven't realized?"

Tiamat shook her head. "No, is it some sort of secret mission I don't know about?"

"It wasn't a secret mission per se, but you are right, I hid this fact from all the Floor Guardians," he sighed, it was really hard to keep a secret for weeks on end. Tiamat looked at him, stopped munching on her snack and started listening intently.

"After I saw your fight with Shalltear, I realized that they don't have enough battle experience."

"Battle experience?"

"Yes. Did you know that when you were fighting Shalltear I had asked Cocytus about what he thought your odds of winning were? He said one to nine. That's a massive difference, but you still won regardless."

Tiamat closed her eyes, refusing to remember the fight she had with Shalltear before, so that her mood wasn't ruined. Just when things with her and Shalltear were getting better.

She didn't want to destroy that.

"I think that's a given, considering our battle styles," Tiamat said matter-of-factly.

Ainz nodded, "Hm, you're right. But you only say that because you have battle experience. What Cocytus was looking at was numbers."

"By numbers, you mean stats?"

Even without Ainz's confirmation, she knew what she had said was correct, and Ainz continued, "Just looking at stats doesn't guarantee that you'll win a fight. The amount of strategy involved, how to counter each attack, and how you will bring them down are necessary pieces of information in a PvP. But it seems that most of the Floor Guardians are unaware of this fact. That is why I limited Cocytus so heavily."

Tiamat put her hand on her chin in contemplation, "Make sense. Just how long have you planned this?"

"It's been a while, actually." Ainz's orbs glowed red, "I want the Floor Guardians to be able to grow, not just some NPCs who are big headed because they're far stronger than most of the New-Worlders. I want them to actually think and strategize."

"That's a pretty good idea," Tiamat's thoughts strayed to some unpleasant memories. "I realized when watching the recording of the fight that day that Shalltear only charged at me head on…"

"I have faith in them. I _know_ for sure that they will grow better and better and will bring the name of Ainz Ooal Gown into the annals of legend!"

"Uwaa..." Tiamat sighed, looking at the chuunibyou act done by the Leader of Ainz Ooal Gown himself. A feeling of discomfort that had been bubbling since they attacked the lizardmen finally rose up.

"It's just that...why are your plans always so...bloody? I was okay with this whole test thing, but...these lizardmen are actually people. People that _we _are killing."

"I want to see if we can improve the New-Worlders outside of Nazarick, but we need to have total control of them first," Ainz replied as if it were obvious.

"Isn't there a better way to do this? The whole plan sounds like we're a final boss of some RPG or something…"

"That depends on the people we are trying to subjugate. If it were humans, I would use a different strategy than the lizardmen. Afterall, the best way for people to cooperate is to instill fear in them. I believe Punitto Moe said that came from some person called 'Machiavelli'."

Tiamat remained quiet, but it was clear from her expression that she disagreed with what Ainz had said.

She put down her popcorn bowl on the table, stood up and went towards Ainz.

"What are you doing?" Ainz asked her when she immediately stood up. But she didn't say a word.

She stopped in front of him.

"Tia…?"

The Dragoness proceed to knock his thick skull with her fist.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Ainz floundered in confusion, the unexpected attack had taken a bit of his HP, it wasn't critical, but it still stung for a little bit.

"Ainz, for someone so smart, I didn't expect you to be so stupid."

"What are you talking about?"

"Your plan won't work in the long run," Tiamat slowly explained, huffing her breath. "Oppression. Rule by fear. Dictatorships. Throughout history, for some reason, the lives of such rulers have always ended in the same way. Death. Now, isn't that strange?"

Ainz pondered quietly for a moment, considering what Tiamat had said.

"I disagree, in those kind of situations, almost every time, there were always a few things the oppressors lacked."

"What is it?"

"Lack of desire for power," Ainz said, lifting a single skeletal digit up. "In most cases, dictators rule in pursuit of greater wealth, fame, and whatnot. Us two however, obviously have no desire for such things. Protecting Nazarick is enough after all."

"So?" Tiamat responded, confused.

"So dictators were driven to that extent because of selfishness. Because they ceased to provide a tangible benefit for those they ruled. On the other hand…" Ainz trailed off, staring into the distance.

"Momo-chan…?" Tiamat was worried that her friend got another stupid idea in his head.

"Maybe… just maybe… We could create a Utopia, a world where everyone of all races can live happily. A world that our friends would have been proud of. A world that we didn't get to be born in." Ainz's eyes flared in excitement as a green aura washed over him.

Tiamat stared blankly at him for a few moments.

She was right.

He had come up with an absolutely foolish idea.

Even so, why was her heart pounding so hard?

Was it out of fear? After all, she was only a mere baker and Momonga was only a salaryman. Plus, this wasn't a game anymore; the actions they took now had real consequences.

Or was it out of excitement?

They had the power to unite the surrounding nations. Nazarick certainly had the wealth to build up infrastructure. And who knew what magic was fully capable of in this new world?

Maybe it was possible.

Just _maybe_.

She was willing to bet on that maybe.

Especially if it meant that there wouldn't be any more orphans like her.

"...alright. But I still think we shouldn't rule by fear or kill a bunch of the lizardmen."

Ainz sighed, "Of course, you've always been the most empathetic out of all the guild. Well, that's not a bad thing, I suppose, seeing as I've lost most of my emotions." Ainz turned to look at her, with what would have been a bitter smile. "You'll just have to empathize enough for both of us."

Tiamat smiled warmly. "Don't worry about that. I'll always be here to keep you grounded, no matter what."

Ainz looked at her for a bit longer before turning back to the mirror while coughing into his fist.

Tiamat stared at him in confusion. Did skeletons need to cough?

"I-In any case," Ainz tried to force his voice back to a serious tone, "I agree with your suggestion to reduce our use of violence. After all, it would be a poor start for a Utopia to be founded on bloodshed."

"However," he looked back at her, red pin pricks piercing through her, "What do you suggest we do instead?"

"It's simple. The path of least bloodshed would be the one where people follow Nazarick out of their own volition."

"I see. And how do you hope to accomplish that?" Ainz raised his invisible eyebrows.

"Easy."

And so they plotted, souls pulsing with new purpose.

ᕦ( ✿ ⊙ ͜ʖ ⊙ ✿ )━ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ

The sound of heavy doors opening came from behind as a two pairs of footsteps made their way into the hall. Needless to say, they were the Supreme Beings of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

"A warm welcome for Ainz Ooal Gown-sama, Supreme Overlord of the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick, as well as Lady Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons."

The voice belonged to Albedo, the Guardian Overseer.

They could hear the door and the crips sound of a staff tapping against the ground. It was followed by small footsteps treading across the ground following the person in front of her.

Normally, when their master entered, they would have bowed to show their respect for him. However, nobody present did so. That was because of Lady Tiamat who expressed her discomfort when treated in such a way.

Ainz-sama agreed with her, saying that formalities didn't matter; what mattered were the results of their work for Nazarick.

Because of this, unease filled Cocytus's soul and was manifested outside his body as he blew a huff of cold air.

Through the use of a skill, Cocytus could sense the other Guardians shifting their attention to him. Even Albedo who was wearing a gentle demeanor radiated an anger that she was trying in vain to suppress.

The footsteps slowly passed around the line of Guardians, ascended the steps, and then reached the throne. As usual, Ainz-sama sat down on his throne with Lady Tiamat stood to his left.

"You may raise your heads to gaze upon the glory of Ainz-sama and Lady Tiamat."

The assembled Guardians looked up—their movements perfectly coordinated—looking up at their Supreme Beings who were on the throne.

Cocytus also raised his head immediately.

When he finally gazed upon his master's figure, he could see the Supreme Being was wreathed in a dreadful aura, backlit by a mysterious black radiance, while Lady Tiamat was the opposite.

Her expression was warm and kind, accompanied with her trademark smile gracing her lips. Her long flowing red gown matched her hair, and he saw a tail peeking out the end of it. She looked divine.

Albedo was satisfied with what she saw and nodded before turning to the Supreme Beings.

"Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat, the Guardians of Nazarick are gathered before you. Please bestow your orders upon us."

Ainz hummed in acknowledgement in a deep, regal tone, before thumping his staff heavily upon the floor. The gesture drew everyone's attention, including the Supreme Being who stood on his left.

"Welcome, you Guardians who are assembled before me," Ainz bestowed upon those who were present. "Now then, I shall first convey my thanks. Demiurge!"

"Yes!"

"You have my thanks for ensuring a stable supply of low tier spell scrolls. However, do not allow yourself to grow lax. After all, our enemies might come up with a way we have not anticipated."

"Your praises are too lavish, Ainz-sama. I am but your humble servant that requires no thanks. As you mentioned, there will be no problems at all in that respect."

Demiurge bowed deeply as he trembled in delight.

"Ah, I saw this in Demiurge's report, didn't you call them Abelion Sheep?" Tiamat curiously asked Demiurge. "But what is that animal? I have never heard of it in my entire life."

Demiurge paused briefly to think, the corner of his mouth accidentally rising up when he heard his Lady call them an _animal_, and she was right; they were just intelligent creatures even lower than that of a monster. Then he continued.

"They are two legged sheep from the Holy Kingdom, My Lady."

Somehow, Tiamat could feel the shade of cruelty under his good-humored facade, but she brushed it off. Given Demiurge's personality, something might be off, and so she asked further.

"A two-legged sheep? You mean a satyr?"

Seeing Ainz who was staring at their Lady in amusement because of her question put a smile on Demiurge and Albedo's faces.

"While I think goats would be better," Ainz interjected, "That name will do. Skin of sheep huh... Would excessive capture effect the local ecosystem?"

Ainz didn't want the tragedy of his planet repeated here in the New World.

"I doubt it. In addition, the use of healing magic allows us to skin them again. Therefore we will not need to capture them en masse if we do not engage in large scale production."

"So, is it a satyr? A sheep? Or a goat? This is making me confused," Tiamat's eyes seemed to spin at the new found information.

"Perhaps you would like to see the farm one day, My Lady?" Demiurge offered good-naturedly. He found nothing wrong with quenching the Dragoness's curiosity.

"Can I do that?" Tiamat asked Ainz.

Ever since the Shalltear incident, Ainz-sama had urged Lady Tiamat to contact him whenever she went out, for her own safety. But here was another example of the Dragoness's thoughtfulness towards the Overlord, for Demiurge knew that his master would do everything to protect her.

"Sure," Ainz agreed. "But that discussion will be put on hold for another time. Carry on."

The Dragoness smiled happily at his approval, humming in delight.

The rest of the Floor Guardians smiled. Lady Tiamat easily dispersed the heavy mood in the Throne Room, making it light-hearted and pleasant. All except for one.

"Understood. I shall begin harvesting them according to age and gender. Once that is done, could you tell me which age of skin is most suitable?"

"I will let the Head Librarian handle that. Next, Victim."

"Yes, Ainz-sama."

"I have summoned you here for one critical reason. If something unexpected happens, I may need you to protect us and the other Guardians with your skill...I apologize for that, and I promise I will resurrect you immediately. I hope you understand."

"Demiurge has already told me about that. Please do not worry, Ainz-sama, afterall I am also your servant. In addition, the goal of my life is death, so there is no greater joy for me than to aid the Supreme Beings even in the slightest of ways."

Tiamat winced when she heard the fetus mention his death so nonchalantly. But she understood he was designed this way.

"Forgive us Victim...we'll do our best so that it may not come to that."

Victim gasped in surprise when he heard what Lady Tiamat had said. There was a look of bewilderment and shock on his face.

"If special circumstances arise, we may need to kill you in order to keep the foe from escaping," Ainz explained further. "Even in that case, I hope you will accept that we are not killing you out of malice. You are one of my beloved children and I do not wish to hurt you, but we may all suffer if we let an unknown enemy be."

"There is no need to explain, Ainz-sama. I am fully aware of your intentions."

"There is a phrase used in one of Nazarick's mechanisms. It goes, _Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends._ That phrase describes you perfectly. Thank you for your love."

Ainz's gaze moved from the Guardian who had pledged his loyalty to the death, and shifted to another Guardian.

"Next, Shalltear."

Shalltear's shoulders trembled. She had not expected that she would be called, and her reply seemed abnormally high-pitched.

"Y-Yes!"

"Come forward."

Unlike the other Guardians, Shalltear was the only one who has called in front of him. She rose to her feet, both surprised and panicked. Her unease was clearly apparent from her back, and she looked like a condemned criminal being sent to the chopping block. Still, she held her head high and thrust out her chest, as though she was walking to glory.

Shalltear stopped a few meters before the stairs.

"Shalltear, you know why you have been called, right?"

As her master spoke those words, Shalltear immediately knew what he was talking about, and her face was filled with shame and guilt.

"Yes, Ainz-sama."

Shalltear's voice was loud and confident, as it echoed through the Throne Room, and Cocytus found himself empathizing with her. No, any Guardian—in fact, anyone who was made by the Supreme Beings—would be able to understand how she felt.

"Really now…"

"Yes…"

His eyes glinted. "In that case, you will pay for the reparation of the damages on the Throne Room's door."

Tiamat lifted her head a bit and glanced at the slightly crooked monolithic doors. She didn't know Shalltear had rammed into it that hard.

"Y-Yes, Ainz-sama," Shalltear ventured as she nervously lifted her head, almost scared to death.

"Even though I did plan to trap you here in the Throne Room so you could have a private discussion with Tiamat without escaping, I failed to miscalculate that you would do so much damage," Ainz sighed.

Tiamat smiled at both of them. "I'll help," she said as she raised her hand.

"No, this is entirely my mistake, My Lady! If I had controlled my emotions properly, that wouldn't have happened," Shalltear refused adamantly. "This was my foolish mistake, so I will take the appropriate punishment!"

"Then, it's settled. Tia, I prohibit you from helping Shalltear in any way."

Tiamat huffed, "Fine…"

Mare and Aura smiled at the peaceful scene.

Even Demiurge had a happy smirk on his face.

Cocytus was somewhat envious of those who could afford to feel that particular emotion, and he looked longingly at his loyal colleagues' smiles.

What Shalltear had feared most was being abandoned by the Supreme Beings, especially after her fight with Lady Tiamat where the Dragoness had experienced troubles and hardships along the way.

But as soon as Ainz had his plan running, Tiamat had obliterated her unease easily.

Cocytus watched Shalltear silently with jealousy in his eyes. How happy she must be now…

Shalltear returned back to her position, her red eyes even redder as she tried to hold back her tears at the Supreme Beings' kindness and bowed with matchless devotion to her masters.

Finally, it was his turn.

"Cocytus, Ainz-sama has something to tell you. Pay close attention," Albedo said, almost glaring.

The air was filled with tension.

The Ruler of the Frozen Glacier bowed his head low, very low. Even if the posture only allowed him to see the floor, he wanted the Supreme Beings to see this as a sign of his utmost respect. How dare he who had failed them have the courage to look directly at them.

"I have seen your battle with the Lizardmen, Cocytus."

"Yes!"

"It ended in defeat."

"Yes. The. Blame. For. That. Failure. Lies. With. Me."

"Indeed. What do you have to say for yourself then?"

"Nothing! Punish. Me. As. You. See. Fit."

Tiamat glanced at Ainz. This wasn't going the way they were hoping.

Then again, maybe they should have expected such a reaction.

"Let me rephrase my question," Ainz said after pausing for a moment, "What do you think went wrong with the expedition?"

"I. Am. Deeply. Remorseful. For. My. Inability. To. Achieve. Victory. Even. After. Receiving. Command. Of. My. Own. Troops. And. For. The. Loss. Of. The. Elder. Lich. Commander. That. You. Personally. Made. Ainz-sama."

"Did you mean the army of undead? It's hardly a loss since you can get undead like that from anywhere, so there is no need to worry about that, Cocytus. But it seems that you didn't understand my question."

The Guardians and the vassals behind Cocytus were confused by those words.

"What I want to know is how you felt when you were commanding your troops," Ainz continued.

Cocytus was absolutely bamboozled. What did his master mean?

In desperation, he looked for answers from the all-knowing smile of the Dragoness. She looked as if she was anticipating what he was about to say.

"Commanding. The. Battle?" The Rulers of Frozen Glaciers shifted uncomfortably, for he did not know how to answer that question.

Seeing his confusion, Tiamat interjected. "Let's put it in a different way. What do you think you should have done to win, Cocytus?"

Cocytus began thinking in silence.

"I. Underestimated. The. Lizardmen. I. Should. Have. Been. More. Careful."

Ainz and Tiamat nodded at his response.

"Is there anything else?" Ainz asked.

"Yes. I. Did. Not. Have. Enough. Information. I. Learned. That. My. Chances. Of. Victory. Would. Be. Slim. If. I. Do. Not. Know. The. Enemy's. Strength. And. The. Terrain."

'Very good, Cocytus. Anything else?"

"The. Commander. Was. Inadequate. Since. The. Troops. Were. Low. Tier. Undead. I. Should. Have. Asked. For. A. Commander. Who. Could. Adapt. To. The. Circumstances. And. Issue. Timely. Orders. Also. I. Should. Have. Attacked. With. The. Zombies. To. Tire. The. Foe. Or. At. Least. Kept. The. Troops. Together. And. Attacked. All. At. Once."

"Is that all?" Ainz continued.

"My. Deepest. Apologies. But. That. Is. All. I. Can. Think. For. Now."

Contrary to what he expected, the Dragoness beamed at his answer as her eyes filled with hope. Looking at her bright eyes, he understood a little bit of what Demiurge meant when he said that Lady Tiamat was like an opened book.

"I see," Ainz replied, satisfaction evident in his voice. "That was an excellent analysis. Of course, there is room for improvement, but that is acceptable for now."

"Cocytus," Tiamat smiled at him. "You did great!"

"Indeed. As long as you can improve yourself and avoid future mistakes, then there is meaning to this defeat. I'm pleased that you have learned something." Ainz said proudly. Instead of being thoroughly disappointed, Cocytus could sense that he was smiling.

"Thank. You. Very. Much. Ainz-Sama! Lady Tiamat!"

"But, the fact remains that you _were_ defeated."

Cocytus's elation from the Supreme Ones' praise vanished instantly as he once again was wracked with uneasy as he waited for the Overlord to pass his judgement.

"What do you think Tiamat?" Ainz head turned to his left, looking at the standing Dragoness. "Should we kill the lizardmen?"

Cocytus shuddered when their kind Lady had a grin on her face; a grin similar to Demiurge's, a cunning, deviant, and rebellious grin.

He breathed in and out several times.

"Well," Tiamat waited, peeking at Cocytus from the corners of her eyes. "Should we?" she asked Ainz back, but to Cocytus it felt like she was asking him, the Ruler of the Frozen Glacier, in a roundabout way.

The Supreme Beings went quiet as they both looked at Cocytus.

A weighty silence filled the air.

"What do you think, Cocytus?"

Lady Tiamat had asked him in a gentle voice, as if to ask the opinion of a child. There was no anger in her voice, just patience and understanding, which made it more frightening.

It was as if he was looking at a gentle warm fire, but he knew that if he let it fester, it would consume him.

After gulping, Cocytus raised his head and looked at the Supreme Beings.

"I. I. Oppose. The. Extermination. Of. The. Lizardmen. And. I Beg. Of. You. To. Show. Them. Mercy."

At his answer, the Goddess's grin became even wider.

"Hoo, you're interested in the Lizardmen then, Cocytus?"

Cocytus straightened himself further when he saw amethyst eyes glinting with surprise and amusement.

Was he that obvious? He wondered.

But the Supreme Being in front of him wasn't wrong. He wanted to offer praise for that exciting battle he had just think the foe had actually turned the impossible into the possible.

As a Warrior, Cocytus was deeply impressed.

"You're. Right. My. Lady. In. The. Future. They. Might. Be. Mighty. Warriors. Therefore. It. Would. Be. A. Shame. To. Wipe. Them. Out. Right. Now."

"But why would we do that?" Ainz calmly asked.

Tiamat was surprised at Ainz's response.

"Ainz!" she whispered, as if she was giving him a warning, but he waved it off.

"This is a question that needs to be asked, Tiamat. If we make use of the Lizardmen, we have to worry about their care and feeding. The only advantage we have in using them is their natural increase in population, which will take a long time to be seen," Ainz explained. "You must understand Tia, afterall, you were the one who managed the use of resources in and out of Nazarick."

"Also," he leaned towards her, lowering his voice to a whisper. "This is to help Cocytus grow more too."

Tiamat nodded in understanding before glancing back at the Guardians, who were all staring at her in surprise, save for Albedo.

They all expected Lady Tiamat to help the Leader of Ainz Ooal Gown, however, they didn't expect their Master to give their Lady such an important job.

Considering her easygoing personality to the Overlord's diligence, they thought she would just help Albedo in small matters or that Ainz-sama only gave her the punishment because he wanted someone to accompany him while he was doing his job.

Albedo who was looking at the confused and shocked faces of the Guardians, smiled in reply.

"That's right," she confirmed, "Lady Tiamat has managed the use of Nazarick's resources efficiently, moreover, she has made a lot of contributions behind the scenes," Albedo said proudly. "Most of the money she got from Adventuring has gone to help Nazarick grow without even spending a single coin out of Nazarick's treasury."

The Guardians' respect towards their Lady had increased tenfold.

The Dragoness's face burned at the unexpected compliment.

Ainz nodded, "With that being said, to spend some of Nazarick's resources that are limited on those Lizardmen would be a waste. Isn't that right, _Tiamat_?"

His red orbs looked at Tiamat, and she immediately understood why he had asked such a question.

She decided to play along.

"You're right," Tiamat agreed reluctantly, "Considering from what Cocytus had written in his report, it seems that the main diet of the Lizardmen consists of fish and alcohol. Even though we brew our own alcohol in Nazarick, we have no means of creating a food reservoir for the Lizardmen. In addition, if we were to take them in, we have to consider their ecosystem as well since they have to live near some sort of water source."

Cocytus looked at his Lady in amazement, because he had only thought of saving the Lizardmen out of personal consideration, paying no heed of the bigger picture.

It was clear that he had not thought that far, and he was ashamed at his shortsightedness.

"This means that it would be extremely difficult to bring them back to Nazarick," Tiamat continued. "All in all, it would be a huge investment with little return."

"With that being said, does your request hold any benefit to the Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick?" Ainz asked his orbs glinting.

Cocytus's heart burned with anxiety.

He racked his brains as hard as he could but he could not find an answer.

"What's wrong Cocytus? Can't think of anything? Then it'll be extermination, no?" Ainz asked the same question as before.

The Ruler of the Frozen Glazier felt like his mandibles weighed a ton as his thoughts spun in endless circles. His mind was drawing a complete blank.

What could the Lizardman do to benefit Nazarick? He continued asking himself over and over.

A silence filled the Throne Room, and Ainz answered in his stead.

"What a shame…"

"Indeed," Tiamat sighed.

Those words of regret that were breathed out by the Supreme Beings threatened to crush the very breath from Cocytus.

In actuality, both Ainz and Tiamat was disappointed.

The point of their questions were to see whether Cocytus was able to think out of his own volition. Even though he was able to strategize in battle, there was little to be desired out of his programmed coding.

But that did not mean that Cocytus was not able to think on his own, afterall, he had explained his _desire_ to save the Lizardmen because he was impressed by them. Only his thoughts were not as well expressed.

This was what they had planned.

If Cocytus had explained his reasoning, they would immediately agree to what he suggested, perhaps tweaked it a little bit so it would suit their plan.

If Cocytus hadn't, then they would suggest what to do.

It seemed their expectations towards the Guardians were too high since Cocytus wasn't able to answer Ainz's question.

They looked at each other and had the same thought.

'_We have a lot of work to do…'_

Just as they were thinking of that, a calm voice interjected.

"Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat, please allow me to interject."

"What is it, Demiurge?" Ainz replied.

"May I be allowed to supply my humble opinion with regards to the Lizardmen?"

"By all means."

Demiurge clears his throat. "To begin with, regardless of how Nazarick turns out in the end, we will ultimately need to gather various forces or exert control over various species. Your servant submits that when the time comes there will be a great difference in the results depending on whether or not we have performed experiments in rulership."

"Oh, that does sound interesting, an excellent suggestion Demiurge."

"I am deeply grateful." Demiurge smiled. "If I may be presumptuous, but are you perhaps waiting for Cocytus to bring it up?"

The Supreme Beings didn't answer his question. Ainz just stared at Demiurge, nothing in his face betrayed his thoughts. But the Goddess next to him was different; as soon he had asked that question, she had broke her eyes from his gaze.

Her attitude said everything the Guardians needed to know.

"You praise us too highly Demiurge. We were merely hoping that all of you would express your opinions more freely," Ainz answered.

It was clear at this point that the Overlord was just being humble.

"With that being said," Ainz continued, "We will place the Lizardmen under our rule. To be honest, me and Tiamat had discussed this previously, and as you all may know, our aim is to bring a perfect Utopia into this world while spreading the name of Ainz Ooal Gown. However, Tiamat had mentioned a flaw in my plan."

The Overlord urged the Dragoness to continue.

"Ruling by fear is easy, but it will make loyalty hard to earn. If we commit to peace, we will be choosing the path with the least bloodshed, and the most gratitude. That is why we have come up with a different plan."

"A different plan?" Demiurge asked.

"Are. We. Not. Going. To. Exterminate. The. Lizardmen?"

"No," Tiamat answered. "I will go to bargain with them."

* * *

**Canon Omake: Through Her Eyes**

* * *

At first she was just asking Yuri because she wanted to see Yuri bust out her moves; maybe some katas here and there to show whether the Gauntlet was comfortable or not.

You know, like when someone goes shopping for a new pair of shoes, they choose the one they liked, _but_ they always made sure to try them on first.

She didn't even think that the shopkeeper's attitude was annoying, afterall, there were far worse examples of customer service back on earth than this one. At least they were still allowed to look around the shop.

Some shops had turned down customers at the door just because of the color of their skin.

When Yuri lightly hit Tiamat, the Dragoness was actually _offended._

Tiamat was a level hundred dragon heteromorph with most of her stats invested in defense and resist. She could handle a level fifty-one attack.

That was why Tiamat activated『Phobos Ambience』for a split second on Yuri.

But she didn't expect such an outcome…

When Yuri had uttered the first few syllables, Tiamat immediately went to think about any physical attack that started with the word _Ka_.

When _Me_ came in, she was utterly confused because there were no spells that started with those two syllables.

Then the next syllable came in.

_Ha_.

There Tiamat realized the utter severity, and _stupidity_ of the situation.

"Err, Y—Lily…." Tiamat started, cautiously raising her hand to stop Yuri.

"ME!" Yuri continued.

'_OHSHITOHSHITOHSHIT!'_

Tiamat went into her battle stance, casting a quick 『Aegis』 on the shopkeeper so that he wouldn't die.

There was no way she could ever bear the shame of people asking her what kind of spell had killed the shopkeeper.

Then the last syllable escaped from Yuri's delicate lips.

Tiamat thought an actual shockwave was coming—a laser beam from Yuri's palm—completely devastating part of the city.

But it was a _mere gust_.

True, the shop was basically decimated, and the shopkeeper had fainted. But none of that was important.

She had been duped.

It felt like when she was watching an awesome video with an epic thumbnail, waiting in anticipation, only to get _Rick Rolled._

"Ah, it seems that was too much…" Yuri said nonchalantly.

The Dragoness smiled at Yuri.

"Y—" she took a furtive glance at the passed out shopkeeper, "—uri."

"Yes, My Lady."

"Who taught you that?" she sweely asked her. Even though her voice was soft, there was an edge to her voice that Yuri could not describe.

Still, she answered the Dragoness question with honesty and pride.

"It was Ainz-sama, My Lady," Yuri's eyes gleamed in satisfaction when she saw that the breathing exercises Ainz-sama had given her were a success.

"I see, Ainz, huh…" she whispered. "By the way Yuri, I was planning to cook a triple layered chocolate cake today."

"Is that so, My Lady?" Yuri exclaimed excitedly.

Out of all the desserts the Dragoness had cooked, her chocolate cake was and always would be the best.

When Yuri closed her eyes, she could imagine the soft, decadent chocolate in the background. The bitter-sweet taste of the velvety chocolate.

She almost drooled in public.

"But I won't give you any," Tiamat simply said.

The heavenly chocolate background shattered to pieces.

"What! Did I do something wrong?!"

Tiamat looked around.

The overturned weapons, shattered display glasses, broken doors and windows.

Then she turned back to Yuri who was kneeling in despair, demanding a fair trial.

"Yes," Tiamat replied, a giggle breaking out of her.

That day, Yuri's salary had been cut off to pay for the reparation costs of the shop.

But her misery didn't end there.

She had to watch her sisters eat the entire cake without her.

* * *

**A/N: I've spoiled you peeps too much, so this chapter is ten pages shorter than the last two chapters. BTW, the scene where Yuri said it was Ainz who taught her to do that was the Purepurepleiades episode where Ainz gave them some sort of breathing exercises, I don't think he taught them kamehameha, but let's say he did for the sake of this chapter lel.**

**17-September-2019: By the time this chapter is published, we have already finished Chapter 20 and 21, DOUBLE UPDATES FTW~ Go join our discord to read them in advance!**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range**r**efreshing **d**rink** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**

**Tell me in the reviews if you can spot all the memes I have scattered throughout the chapters!**

**Hackslashbash: We'll try to work more on 'YGGDRASIL' fanfic of AOG members. No promises though. This is what Mare reads in his spare time. Also, next chapter will be uploaded in two weeks, but discord members can view them as soon as we finish them. Link is in our profiles. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**


	20. CHAPTER 20: Blessing From A False God

**Collection of Ashurbanipal **

**Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth**

**Chapter II: Growing Up**

His brood was massive and waxed ever greater in strength.

All except one.

One red-scaled dragon that still couldn't kill a human, a mere _human_, in single combat.

The Foul Devourer was disgusted.

Weakness had no place in his flight of destruction.

And so he banished the child from his realm, leaving the weakling to fend for herself in the myriad worlds of Yggdrasil.

Surprisingly, the child did not die.

She ventured out into obscure and deadly lands, growing ever stronger.

From smoldering calderas filled with ferocious elementals to plains where grass was as sharp as swords, the child wandered, persevering through all hardships.

Before the Black Wyrm knew it, the child was no longer weak.

* * *

**Chapter 20: Blessings From A False God**

* * *

There was an ability known as danger sensing.

Among adventurers, thieves and those who heavily relied on their senses highly prized this ability. As the name implied, it allowed the user to sense danger.

There were two main variations of the ability. One kind disregarded logic and analysis. _Instinct_. The ability to make decisions in a split second according to one's perceptions.

The other was _Analysis_. The product of experienced reasoning and deduction.

The first ability was essentially a sixth sense and intuition, while the conclusions drawn from observed changes in the environment fell into the latter category.

It was possible for one to hone such an ability on the battlefield; the more hazardous the environment, the more experience.

Lizardmen were superior to humans in terms of senses because they lived in much more hostile conditions, where monsters and predators alike were their neighbors. As a result, their instincts were sharper than the average adventurer.

Zaryusu, who was used to long solo journeys, could accurately and keenly gauge the changes in the air.

And so, he was the first one to snap his head towards the clouds, followed by Crusch, and then the rest of the Lizardmen who saw the two looking up.

"What are you looking at?" Sharyusu warily asked.

"I sensed something Ani-ja," Zaryusu immediately answered. "Something...strong."

The familiar night sky had turned bright, too bright in fact, forcing the Lizardmen to squint their eyes.

At the sudden appearance of light, the Lizardmen armed themselves.

Expecting another onslaught, just like what they had experienced a week ago, they were understandably confused when they saw a humanoid figure hovering in the sky.

"A human…?" Zenberu spoke up.

"No, look closely Ani-ja."

"A tail?"

"It seems that you've noticed too," Zaryusu mentioned to his brother. "...That person up there is not human."

Crusch nodded in fear beside him.

Zaryusu stopped to look at his trusty Frost Pain, ready to strike.

But this monster—no, his aura felt too divine—had come alone. Empty handed, with nothing in his hands.

His entire body was bathed in a golden light.

And when Zaryusu took a closer look, he corrected himself.

"That is not a man," Zaryusu realized.

Long strands of red hair gently fell around her face, and once the clouds cleared up, the Lizardmen could see the feminine lines of the figure above them. Crowning her head was a set of intricate horns, banishing all notions that she was a human.

"Children, drop your swords," she said melodiously, her voice carrying despite the wind.

Zaryusu shuddered when he heard that gentle voice.

She hovered just in front of them, an aura of sheer oppressiveness radiating off her being.

Feeling the extent of her power, all of them complied without a word, dropping their swords to the ground. Even Zaryusu was helpless in such a situation.

Zaryusu's eyes widened in shock.

"W-Why did we drop out weapons?" Shasuryu asked him.

"Pick it up, damn it!" Zenberu, the leader of the Dragon Tusk roared to his tribe.

"W-We can't!" one of them replied.

"Tsk, what the hell is this!"

Suddenly, the remaining clouds were blown away by a huge gust of wind, exposing a large white Dragon behind the mysterious woman.

It roared with might, creating a powerful shockwave that blew the weapons on the ground away.

"Who are you?" Zaryusu asked, flinching from the shockwave.

She smiled at them warmly, "I am the last of my brothers and sisters, the daughter of the Baleful Wyrm Nidhogg. I am Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons."

"A-A Dragon…!"

"There's no way you're a Dragon!" Zenberu shouted out.

Most of the tribes present agreed; the person in front of them looked half human, half dragon: a halfling. Compared to the _real_ Dragon behind her, there was obviously a massive difference in their appearances.

The Dragon behind her snarled. His red eyes stared at them in disdain, as if they had said something insulting.

The woman raised her hand to gently pet the Dragon's head, and its snarls instantly turned into soft rumbling, almost like a cat's purr.

"Hm, your opinion doesn't matter much in this instance I'm afraid. Whether you believe me or not, I only came here to give you a warning."

"Is it perhaps, the army of Undead that is about to attack us tomorrow?" Crusch bravely asked, and Zaryusu looked at her in awe. As expected of his future wife.

Slowly, the Goddess's eyes became solemn. "That's right."

"You're not here to attack us?"

She shook her head.

"Then tell us," Zaryusu said with growing confidence.

"My child, the God of Death has foreseen a bleak future for you. All of you," she said in a soft voice, but with their keen sense of hearing, they all heard it.

"God of Death?"

"An old colleague of mine," the Goddess stared at the sky wistfully, "He has foreseen an unstoppable disaster and plans to wipe out half of your population to ease your suffering in the future."

"B-But why?" Crusch asked in desperation. "I am sure there are other ways to solve this issue, must he kill half of us?"

"There's no way of knowing what he might think. He is a God of Death. For him, this is the best solution for all of you. Howeve—"

Zaryusu's head started to spin.

"Did you really come here just to tell us that?" Zenberu interrupted the deity before him.

The Goddess stayed quiet.

He continued, "If you're really a Goddess, then why don't you stop him?"

"I am weak, my power can't even be compared to his," she started to explain, taking his interruption in stride, "My soul had been scattered throughout the world, and it has only been a few years since I've managed to recollect myself. It would take me some time until my power is fully replenished."

"You're lying!"

"Zenberu…" Zaryusu chastised him. Goddess or not, the being in front of them was not one they could afford to offend, especially since they had to prepare for the Undead Army.

"No. in the first place this whole thing is fishy. There's no way that you're a Goddess!"

"We don't have time to argue," she said exasperatedly. "The army of Undead is coming tomorrow morning after dawn. Please listen to—"

"Prove it!" Zenberu challenged. "Prove to us that you are truly a Goddess."

"Zenberu!" Zaryusu chided, almost shouting.

If what she said was the truth, then they didn't have time to fight her. Moreover, seeing how loyal the Dragon was, she could simply order the Dragon to eradicate them.

This was the worst course of action they could take.

If they lost the battle here, then their remaining forces would have to battle the Undead Army. Assuming they would have any people left.

She sighed. "Very well."

The Goddess slowly landed on the swampy ground, and her Dragon shortly followed.

Almost immediately, the Dragon Tusk tribe surrounded her.

"I challenge you to a fight!" Zenberu took a battle stance. "If you win, then you are truly a Goddess beyond compare, but if you lose, then get out of our sights!"

The Goddess's amethyst eyes looked at him, and from her delicate lips, only one word was uttered.

"No."

"What did you say?!"

"You will all fight me, and I won't move a single muscle," she said, shocking all the lizardmen present, "If you fail to land a hit on me before dawn, you will have to devote yourselves to me."

The Lizardmen broke out into murmurs.

"I will make sure you are taken care of," she continued. "Properly fed to ensure the survival of your species. I will protect you like you were my own, and I will make you stronger."

Zaryusu considered this option.

"What would happen if you were to lose?"

"Then I will devote myself to you," she smiled, without a hint of deception in her voice. He could see that her eyes were clear and honest, although a hint of playfulness glinted within those orbs.

At this point, Zaryusu knew that she was sure of her victory in this bet.

But it would be the full tribe against a single person. In the end, because of their combined pool of stamina, she would definitely fall to exhaustion first. After all, there was a popular saying in his tribe: A Lizardmen as strong as ten can be easily defeated by the eleventh.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes," her grin widened. "You can own me, make me do your bidding, even rape me, and I will comply without any resistance," her eyes squinted as if amused. "_If_ you win that is."

"And the Dragon won't interfere?"

"Yes."

"Then it's settled! I will make you mine after you lose in this battle, so prepare yourself!"

At Zenberu's exclamation, she raised her hand- covered by the long sleeve of her dress- to her mouth and laughed.

At first it was a gentle giggle, but then it morphed into a twisted, sickening laugh.

"Do your best," she simply said.

"Grab the weapons, quickly!" Zenberu ordered. "You will regret this, woman."

She only smiled in return.

( º﹃º )

**A few hours before the encounter.**

"No, I don't approve of this," Ainz said with a sense of finality.

"But you already agreed!" Tiamat exclaimed in confusion.

The Guardians watched their banter with interest.

"Yes, while I did agree to your plan, I didn't agree that you could go down there by yourself," Ainz sighed in frustration. "Seriously, stop deciding things on your own."

"I'm not, I thought you already agreed by default."

"_No_."

"I'm sorry, Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat, may I know the reason for your disagreement?" Demiurge asked, his gemstone eyes gleaming with curiosity.

Tiamat sighed, "I was planning to bargain with the Lizardmen. I'm sure they'll accept if we say we can solve their food resource issues."

"I. Don't. Think. It. Will. Be. That. Simple. My. Lady."

"Why is that, Cocytus?"

"The. Lizardmen. Are. Proud. Creatures. They. Will. Only. Follow. The. Strongest. So. You. Might. Have. To. Prove. Yourself. In. Battle."

"Another battle?" Tiamat groaned, "Is there no other way to do this?"

"Since Cocytus is the one who failed, he should go bargain with them," Ainz suggested.

"I. Will. Do. As. You. Command." Cocytus said eagerly, direly desiring to redeem himself.

Demiurge stayed quiet, observing the whole situation as his brain went into overdrive.

Suddenly, he smiled widely, as if enlightened.

"As expected of the Supreme Beings," Demiurge whispered under his breath. The only one who was able to hear him clearly was Shalltear who was standing beside him.

"Demiurge...?" Shalltear asked, wondering if he was alright.

The red suited demon stepped forward. "I finally understand the extent of your plan, Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat. I am humbled to be able to call myself your servant!" he said with pride etched in every word he said.

Ainz looked at Tiamat, she only shrugged in response.

"...Is that so, Demiurge? As expected, you don't disappoint," Ainz sagely replied.

Tiamat looked at her skeletal friend in utter confusion, before leaning in to whisper to him, "You have any idea what he's saying?"

He replied in 『Message』.

[No clue…]

The two beeps signalled that the『Message』 had ended.

'_Oh yeah, we have that function here…_' Tiamat realized, feeling stupid that she had leaned in to whisper to Ainz.

"Perhaps you could explain it to the other Floor Guardians, Demiurge," Ainz directed his gaze at Demiurge, curious of the extent of the demon's analytical skills.

He bowed at the command, "With pleasure."

Demiurge stood a small distance away from the Throne and faced all the Guardians.

"Dominant nations will abandon all ideas of aggression and self-aggrandizement when they are united by the bonds of love, sympathy, and co-operation," he began, raising up his glasses with confidence. "I have to say, Lady Tiamat is ingenous for thinking of such methods…"

Tiamat just looked at him in absolute befuddlement.

"To unite all nations and races to create a Utopia, isn't this your true goal, Ainz-sama?"

"That's right," Ainz confirmed.

At the answer, Demiurge's smile widened.

"However, world unity is impossible without cementing a force of moral goodness. That is why in order to create a solid foundation for the Utopia, a change of outlook on life is imperative. This is where Lady Tiamat comes in," Demiurge gestured towards the Dragoness. "Creating one Universal Religion mandating world peace."

Ainz stared at Demiurge.

"Is my analysis correct, Ainz-sama?"

Ainz's orbs flared in excitement, "Yes! Indeed, this is what Tiamat had told me."

Tiamat's head had never turned so fast.

[No. Wait. Hold up. I did say that we need to unite people through faith, but I never said anything about me being the center of it!]

She could feel Ainz's smirk on his expressionless, skeletal face.

"Truly ingenious," Demiurge praised her once again, looking at Tiamat in a new light.

"H-Hold on just a moment Demiurge," Tiamat floundered, trying her best to clear the misunderstanding. "I did say something like that to Ainz bu—"

"So you did, My Lady!" Demiurge exclaimed excitedly, his tail wagging to and fro like a puppy who had found a new toy.

Tiamat almost groaned.

The way Demiurge was looking at her was exactly like how the baby Dragons looked at her when she visited them.

His multifaceted eyes twinkled in eagerness. Moreover, he was also joined by the rest of the Floor Guardians who were looking at her in awe.

She felt an immense pressure to not disappoint any of them.

"W-We could always make Ainz the basis of this religion," Tiamat suddenly suggested, "Isn't he perfect? That skeletal expressionless face, that white ivory color of his bones, those, uh...flaring eyes." she sighed in dejection, clutching her forehead as a headache began pounding in the back of her head. "Okay yeah, I'll do it,"

Ainz chuckled under his breath, completely entertained by the absurdity of the situation.

Tiamat could only sigh.

She realized that Ainz had a point.

'_Out of all the people in Nazarick, I'm the one who's probably the most suitable for this stupid role. Momo-chan is strong and capable enough, but he's literally a skeleton. Instead of the mascot for a Universal Religion, his avatar is more suited for the final RPG boss battle. The Pleiades look human, but they're too weak, which means an increase in security issues. And the Floor Guardians all have a dislike for outsiders which makes it hard to achieve peace.'_

The headache turned into a migraine as she grudgingly accepted his suggestion.

'_Yup, it's gotta be me…'_

"Then it is settled," Ainz said with gusto. "However, you are still not going down there by yourself."

"Then how am I supposed to bargain with them?"

"If I am not mistaken..." Demiurge interjected, as he offered the Supreme Beings with a solution.

At the simple suggestion, Ainz's eyes suddenly went dark as a green aura washed over him.

( º﹃º )

The Lizardmen rushed towards the Goddess and formed a formation to attack her.

As promised, her Dragon idled a little distance away, spectating the fight.

Zaryusu and some of the Tribe Leaders, including his Ani-ja, stayed behind to observe.

"CHARGE—!"

"Oraaaaaaaa!"

Fully committed to the battle, the Lizardmen cried out loud from the depths of their souls, a roar which seemed to split the very sky, and rushed at the woman.

With this amount of Lizardmen attacking her simultaneously, she could only think of one spell in particular.

"『Aegis』." she chanted.

As soon as she had activated the skill, a small golden sphere the diameter of her arms had enveloped her. Judging from the Lizardmens' levels, it would be impossible for them to pierce through this defense.

『Aegis』was a skill exclusive to specific tank classes that consumed mana the longer the user used it. Considering how small the sphere was and the amount of mana she possesses, she was convinced she could last two days, even with the _twenty percent_ penalty she received.

She understood that she had『High-Tier Physical Immunity V』 and『High-Tier Magical Immunity V』 that could nullify physical attacks below level eighty and spells of the eighth-tier and below, she still didn't want these Lizards to dirty her appearance with their spells and attacks.

At full power, she knew that with a flick of a finger, she could easily launch the Lizardmen across the pond.

So even if they somehow had the ability to pierce through the golden shield, she still had to suppress her power.

The warm light that was emitted through the sphere terrified the cold-blooded Lizardmen as they rammed themselves head on into it, only for them to be repelled.

Arrows flew but could not pierce it. Swords were swung but were all thrown away in the end.

There was no weapon they had that was capable of piercing the golden sphere.

"Interesting!" Zenberu shouted excitedly. "Here I go!"

He charged head on, intent on sending a karate chop to the shield that was enhanced with 『Iron Natural Weapon』 and 『Iron Skin』.

"Guoooooh—!"

But it was no use. His attack had no effect.

The strongest of the Dragon Tusk Tribe looked at his palm in confusion.

"My attack...didn't work?"

Zaryusu looked at the golden sphere, and how Zenberu failed to break it.

It seemed that their last hope was Frost Pain.

He clenched the three-pronged blade tightly, and swung it at the sphere.

Seeing that the Goddess had offered them no resistance from the beginning, he had used a powerful skill specific to Frost Pain.

"『Icy Burst』!" he roared out.

This slash could freeze everything within its range instantly and deal heavy ice damage.

When the ice touched the sphere, it split into two different directions, all away from the shield itself.

It was as if the ice itself had been divided into two.

His ice attack split into two streams around her and froze the ground surrounding her. Grass shattered as it was subjected to extreme cold, and mud solidified into a brown slush.

"I-Impossible!" Shasuryu spoke out in horror. "Even the Frost Pain dealt no damage?!"

"Was that your best?" she brought her hand up to her mouth in a mock yawn. "Perhaps all of you children have had enough?"

At the mockery from the strange woman, the eyes of all the Lizardmen sharpened. Zenberu especially was enraged from the sheer confidence the woman emitted.

Allowing the emotion to consume them, they charged at her while Zaryusu stayed back.

He knew that if his Frost Pain didn't work then nothing would.

"Perhaps she truly is a Goddess?" Crusch had said what he was thinking out loud.

"We can't just trust her," Zaryusu rebutted.

"But look at it Zaryusu, as she had promised, she hasn't even retaliated yet in this fight," Crusch pointed out. "From what I've heard in legends, Gods and Goddesses are fickle creatures. If she were truly one, then the very possibility that we have enraged her..."

Zaryusu understood the implication behind her words, and looked at the scene in front of him.

The Lizardmen were giving everything they got, but it was all useless.

And as the so called Goddess promised, she didn't move a single muscle.

Throughout the night the battle continued on, as the Lizardmen tried finding ways and loopholes around the sphere, such as launching Zenberu up for him to strike the top of sphere and trying to dig into the ground to find the opening underneath the sphere, but miserably failed in all regards.

It was the perfect defence.

Seeing that the so called Goddess didn't counter their attacks, they felt much safer since she abided by her promise. They even took some time to rest since they had exhausted their stamina.

Zenberu, the bluntest one out of them all, gnashed his teeth in frustration.

No matter how hard he hit, his attack just couldn't reach her.

"Damn it!" he resumed attacking the sphere with all his might.

He would show this so called Goddess to not look down on them and wipe the smirk off her face!

"『Iron Skin』!" his fist landed once again on the sphere, to no avail. Zenberu gritted his teeth to the point where his gums started bleeding.

He landed punches on the sphere over and over again until he had completely exhausted himself, panting as he joined the rest of the resting Lizardmen.

They had formed a circle around her, blocking all possible exists except for the sky.

Zaryusu observed Zenberu who was the most thick-headed of them all finally sit down with the rest of his tribesmen, puffing in annoyance as Crusch immediately ran to him to heal his wounds.

One question lingered in the traveller's mind.

"Why now?" Zaryusu suddenly asked out of curiosity, and the Goddess finally looked up to answer him. "The Lizardmen Tribes has been plagued by food shortages for years, causing the Lizardmen to split into several groups. Not only that, but several disasters had fallen to the tribes because of it," he said to the Goddess, remembering his soon to be mate's past about her Red Eye Tribe.

The Goddess's eyes looked at him directly, and he felt her sharp gaze cut into his soul.

If he didn't know any better, her eyes looked as if she was trying to come up with the best answer she could muster.

"If you really want to save us that badly, then why now?" he continued.

A sound question from his part, indeed.

The rest of the Lizardmen who had heard his question intently waited for the Goddess to reply.

"I was betrayed," she said as a sad expression morphed on her face, as if she was remembering something bitter. "My soul was scattered across the Nine Realms and it took eons for it to recollect. That is the only reason."

Zaryusu was shocked at how easily the so called Goddess would give that information to them. Shasuryu nodded at him, and he knew what his brother was trying to say.

Her appearance bore no hint of deception when she answered his question. She was far too open as someone who was making a bargain with them.

Since information was of utmost importance, he continued asking.

"Who betrayed you?"

"Humans and elves."

"Why?"

She casted her eyes down to the ground, as if refusing to remember what happened. "Because they were threatened by me, even though I did nothing to them."

"We are Lizardmen, a demi_-human _race. Don't you want to eradicate us for what happened to you?"

The Goddess stayed quiet, her eyes moving once again to look at him.

Zaryusu felt as if those eyes were judging his entire life.

After some time, she finally opened her mouth.

"You are not them," she simply answered. "You are you, and they are they. You two don't have any correlation with each other. Besides, I already exacted my revenge on them."

"Then why do you want to save us?" Crusch asked. "Why us?"

"Why not you?" the Goddess questioned back.

At that response, Crusch became quiet.

"Do you really want to save us that badly?" Zaryusu continued in his mate's stead.

"Yes. Afterall, even though we might differ in species, Lizards are a derivative of Dragons. All of you are basically a long distant descendant of mine," she said with a warm smile on her face.

She had said all of that lovingly, as if they were truly her family by blood.

Zaryusu's heart was filled with doubt and unease.

Was she truly there to save all of them? Yet, her reasons remained unclear.

No one sane would go that far.

Lizards and Dragons were two different species, and the latter was obviously far more superior than the other.

If he were to compare them, they were the rulers of swamps, while Dragons ruled both the land and the skies.

They were muddy, dirty, and weak. Dragons were strong, majestic, and wise.

The answer he received from the Goddess had created a baffled look on his face.

Crusch, who was sitting beside him, asked yet again.

"So you really want to help us?"

"Yes," the Goddess steadily replied.

"But why would we devote ourselves to you?"

"Devotion leads to faith, and faith gives birth to miracles. I am strong in spite of this weakened form, but even gods desire a bit of appreciation," she quipped.

"Did your kind not appreciate you?" Crusch asked sympathetically.

The Goddess casted her eyes downwards. "I was the weakest amongst my siblings. Even though I am a Dragon, I was not as fast, nor as strong as they were. It took me centuries to get to their level, and even then, I was thrown away."

She would always remember this part of the story.

It was the saddest part of the book.

All she ever wanted was love from her family, a love they did not provide.

How could someone so gentle come out of such a harsh environment?

"I-I understand your pain…" Crusch said.

"You do?"

The Albino Lizard nodded.

"I too was of the same circumstances as you were."

The Goddess tilted her head slightly, "Indeed, I see that your appearance is different from those around you… And you were treated poorly because of it? Truly, to think my children would treat each other so…" a tear slipped from her eye.

They were shocked when they saw the tears staining her cheeks.

"I-It wasn't probably as bad as you might think," Crusch tried to cheer the Goddess up, "Someone like me would be abandoned as soon as they were born, but I was lucky since I had very loving parents…"

Zaryusu huffed, his tail swaying in agitation, "Crusch…"

"Sometimes I wonder, what would my fate have been if I was raised by different lizardmen or if I wasn't talented enough in magic."

"Crusch, stop," Zaryusu pleaded.

"But it's true Zaryusu," Crusch voice almost broke as she finally told him the bitterness buried within her heart. "If I wasn't strong enough, then perhaps we would have never met."

"You're wrong Crusch, no matter what happens, I will always find you, even if you were cast away. I will follow you even to the deepest parts of hell."

"Thank you, Zaryusu," Crusch whispered, her trembling tail betraying her feelings.

The Goddess wiped the tears from her eyes, "The love the two of you hold for each other… I have seen few bonds so strong."

Her eyes then hardened, "However, we have little time left. The Death God's vassals are quickly approaching and I doubt even the most valorous of you can stand against him. You must come to a decision soon."

Even if she had won the bet, she still offered them a choice.

"You haven't proven anything to us!" Zenberu screamed out. "All you did was guard yourself against our attacks. For all we know, you might be using some sort of divine spell to buff yourself. So why should we follow you?!"

"I didn't want to do this but...『Åsgårdsreien』."

The Goddess amethyst eyes had turned molten yellow.

Zenberu's body suddenly went stiff as his eyes swiveled around in panic. He had lost control of all of his limbs.

"What the hell did you do to me?!"

"Kill the person beside you," the Goddess nonchalantly commanded.

The Lizardmen next to Zenberu was shocked at the very sentence.

"Zenberu-sama, please…!"

Zenberu desperately tried to move away as his fist pulled back and prepared to launch itself towards his terrified tribe-mate.

"I-I can't move my hands! It's not me, I swear!"

He felt his body activating its strongest Martial Arts against his will, and he closed his eyes as his empowered fist sped towards his tribe mate's head.

"No, stop! Don't make me do this, PLEASE!" he begged, but still, the stiff feeling in his arm wouldn't dissipate.

The Goddess only watched blankly in response.

However, right before his hand crushed the skull of his fellow lizardman, his hand was blocked by the Goddess's hand.

"Do you see now? From the start, there was no need for me to bargain with you. I could've done this from the very beginning," The Goddess offered up her palm as dawn slowly broke over the horizon.

"I want to create a peaceful world where nobody would need to die or get sick. A place where you can eat to your heart's content as you watch your children grow old. A place with no discrimination. A Utopia."

The sphere around her slowly disintegrated into the morning sun.

At that point, they knew they had lost.

If she wanted to, she could just ordered them to do her bidding.

But now they could see that she cared enough to think of their opinions.

"Will you devote yourself to me, my children?"

As the light slowly rose to the sky, the bright light of dawn reflected off her hair, and they could only gaze in awe at the sheer beauty in front of them.

The Goddess in front of them bore the face of divinity, and none of them could hide the reverence on their faces.

Zaryusu was the first one to break out of his stupor as he slowly walked towards the Goddess and kneeled in front of her.

"I, Zaryusu, will devote my entire being to Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons," he solemnly swore.

"I, Crusch, will also devote myself to you, Goddess," she quickly followed.

Slowly, one by one, they all kneeled with their heads on the ground.

Pandora's Actor smiled as he successfully completed his mission.

"Excellent," he said with a smile he knew best.

( º﹃º )

Ainz and Tiamat sat inside the Overlord's office and watched the whole exchange through the 『Mirror of Remote Viewing』.

The Dragoness huffed as she laid down on the plush pillows of the sofa.

"I told you it would've been fine if I went down by myself…" she complained.

"And how many times do I have to tell you that a no is a no," Ainz strictly retorted. "I trust you, but I still need to keep a watchful eye on you so you don't do any more stupid things."

Tiamat groaned in disbelief. "That was just once…"

Regardless of her disagreement, she still complied with what Ainz had decided. She knew that it was his way of showing that he cared about her, and she knew that he didn't want the same incident to be repeated again.

She knew that if she was on the other end, she would be beyond hurt.

That was why she tried her best to follow his decisions, hoping she could give him at least a little relief.

They watched as Pandora's Actor descended into the Lizardmen land which matchless grace and virtue, wondering if that was how Pandora's Actor saw her.

"Pandora's Actor did a good job." Ainz said out of the blue, his eyes still stuck on the monitor.

"You think so?" Tiamat looked at the monitor once again. "Is that how I really look like?"

The person in the monitor was graceful, charming, and seductive. She felt that they were complete opposites.

Ainz hummed in response. "Indeed, he has you down to a tee."

"I see…" Tiamat said with a small voice.

It was a difficult question that had been plaguing the back of her mind, but she had been recently pondering her femininity and reality as 'Tiamat' in the New World.

She knew from the beginning that the current experience she was living was definitely not the typical case.

On Earth, she was a scrappy brown-haired girl that didn't want to draw attention to herself. She was content with letting herself blend in with her surroundings because she knew it would be safer for her.

When Tiamat saw Pandora's Actor and just how sensual she could be, she almost panicked. The very idea that she could easily tempt a man just by batting an eyelash was both humiliating and scary at the same time.

She couldn't help but shudder at the thought.

Her issues had only got more complicated as she grew older. To add to her quickly maturing mind, she had always thought that she was undesirable.

She just thought it wouldn't be fair to her future lover to have such a dirty and tainted body. They deserved better than her.

That was why she steered herself away.

She was luckier than others though, because she didn't have to carry any _baggage_ in her past life after that incident.

As soon as she was acutely aware of the consequences of the incident, she had casted out the organ that defined her as a woman out of disgust. Along with the possibility of their _seed_'s future with it.

Her pondering was broken by Ainz's statement.

"Hm, Pandora's Actor is indeed good," he commented on his own creation.

Tiamat stared once again at the monitor in front of her.

Pandora's Actor had shed a few drops of tears, streaking his cheeks with the salty substance, making her seem much more demure and empathetic.

It looked like she was crying for real.

"Your creation is too perfect, is there anything Pandora's Actor can't do?"

"Of course not, he is my creation afterall," Ainz said with pride.

Tiamat shook her head as she erased all the bad thoughts from her past.

Right now she was no longer on earth, but in the New World. She was given a new opportunity with her family once again.

And she would use it well.

"So, mission successful?" she said looking at the monitor as the Lizardmen bowed to _her_. "What do we do now?"

Ainz nodded, "We will move on to the next step," he said as he stood up.

"Ah," Tiamat realized, "The _confrontation_, right? Do we really have to do that?"

"This is just the tip of the iceberg. As their supposed enemy, I at least have to show up once to try to convince them once and for all."

Tiamat smiled, standing up as well. "Alright, what are we going to do?"

Ainz's orbs flared to life.

( º﹃º )

Pandora's Actor walked to where Lady Tiamat's Dragon was sitting and quietly petted him, praising a job well done.

Pentakrisis purred under his touch.

'_Even though you are not my master, your touch pleases me, impostor,_' Pentakrisis said.

Pandora's Actor heard the dragon speak through the mental link between Pentakrisis and Lady Tiamat, and was awed.

'_So this is how you communicate with Lady Tiamat._'

The connection was clear and crisp without any interference. He knew what Pentakrisis felt immediately and the Dragon knew how he felt as well.

Their bond was so strong that Lady Tiamat could easily trust her thoughts with her dragons.

In a way, Pandora's Actor felt a bit jealous of the connection they had, wondering if he could ever have the same with his Vater.

Reminded of his mission, he swiftly hid himself perfectly out of sight. To the eyes of the Lizardmen, she was just checking on her Dragon.

Pandora's Actor briefly glanced to his sides before messaging Ainz-sama,

[Meine Gott, I am prepared to switch.]

[Excellent, in that case I will open a 『Gate』now.]

A violet-black rift opened before him, and from it Lady Tiamat walked out.

"Wow, it really is strange to look at an exact copy of myself," he heard Lady Tiamat say as she stepped out from the portal.

Still in the form of his Lady, Pandora's Actor puffed out his chest in pride. "Of course! Ainz-sama designed me to be the perfect representation of the whole guild!"

"And you did a really good job representing us too, Pandora's Actor! Ainz and I are super proud of you."

"D-Danke, Meine Dame!" Pandora's Actor quickly returned to his original form and snapped to a sharp salute.

He was over the clouds in joy, upon hearing the praise from the Supreme Being.

Although Pandora's Actor knew that his Vater loved him, he also knew that Ainz-sama was somewhat ashamed of his dramatic behavior as well.

Hearing that his father was proud of him was the greatest reward he could have possibly received.

"Anyways, we'll take things over from here. When I get back, I'll prepare an entire cheesecake for lunch. Don't tell anyone else though," she whispered.

The cheesecake, however, was the cherry on top.

"Danke, Meine Dame!" he gestured excitedly.

His voice was muffled by the Dragon's groan. As soon as Tiamat saw that Pandora's Actor was going to act dramatically, she sent a quick command to Pentakrisis to cover up the noise.

"Shhh," Tiamat warned him. "Don't be too noisy or they'll be able to hear us."

Realizing his blunder, he whispered to her in response, "Ja!" and saluted her one last time before crossing through the portal.

When Pentakrisis caught the scent of his real Master, he jumped in joy and threw himself towards her direction, his tail wagging happily in delight.

"T-Taki…" Tiamat grunted in surprise, she really had to hold back her children's bad habits of throwing their entire weight into her.

Just as she was about to scold him, he gave her the biggest, sweetest, puppy eye ever and her annoyance dissipated in an instance.

"Awww, how could I stay mad at that face~" she scratched his neck with her fingers and he let his tongue hang out in delight.

The Lizardmen could only look at the scene in front of them with shock.

"She is truly a Goddess of Dragons…"

"To be able to reduce the mighty Dragon to such an extent…"

Thinking that they had insulted his master yet again, Pentakrisis turned his head to look behind him and snarled.

The Lizardmen jumped away as their instinct flared in warning.

"Hey, it's alright. They're our family now," she led Pentakrisis closer and closer to Zaryusu whose position was the closest to hers.

Pentakrisis let out a stream of hot air in annoyance.

'_I don't like it. They're weak. Even weaker than the little ones_' he complained.

'_Well, of course you can't compare them to the Lizardmen. They're baby dragons, they still got room to grow,_' Tiamat said to him, petting the scales under his chin as he purred in excitement.

'_In the first place, the Dragon that fucked around with another race must be punished. How could they taint the pure blood of our noble kind!_' he indignantly grumbled between purrs.

Tiamat decided to ignore that statement.

'_M-Master…!'_

"What is your name?"

"I am Zaryusu Shasha, a Traveler," he immediately answered. "T-This is Crusch, my future mate!" he declared.

"Z-Zaryusu!"

Tiamat almost shrieked out in excitement. "My my, aren't you two just adorable! Have you decided when you're getting married?" she asked curiously.

At the sudden question, Crusch's paleness was washed away by the bright blush on her cheeks.

"M-M-Ma-Married…!"

"As soon as we can!" Zaryusu declared, his tail thumping against the ground in excitement. He suddenly froze as he sensed a change in the atmosphere.

Tiamat looked away from the couple to focus across the pond. The very air had changed and turned cold and desolate.

"It seems that we have to stop our pleasantries here," the Goddess solemnly informed the Lizardmen. "All of you, please prepare yourselves."

"Yes!" they all answered simultaneously.

Tiamat stood near the pond itself, as she looked out into the distance.

The leaders of the Lizardmen tribes stood a few meters behind her, and cast their gazes in the same direction

Facing them on the other side between the pond and the forest was vast array of armored skeletons.

"I thought it would take them some time to replace their heavy losses after the last fight," Zaryusu clicked his tongue, "I should've known…"

"But still, if it's just skeletons then we have no need for the Goddess's help," Zenberu said in excitement.

But their Goddess kept her eyes trained on the skeletons facing them.

"Look closer…" she said in response.

Indeed, they were all skeletal creatures, but they were drastically different from the skeletons the Lizardmen had previously fought.

These skeletons were equipped with full sets of gear. There also seemed to be three broad classes of personal equipment on the skeletons across them.

Zaryusu, who was closely inspecting them, finally realized what the Goddess had meant.

"H-How could this be…"

Crusch who stood beside him gasped in response.

All the weapons wielded by the skeleton army were magical in nature. Some had flaming swords, while others had hammers crackling with electricity. Some had pikes whose heads were sheathed in green light, while others had scythes which dripped with a viscous purple fluid.

"Not just that, but the armor is all enchanted as well."

Zaryusu took a closer look as he heard Zenberu speak.

He groaned in dismay when he noticed that the shining suits of armor did not reflect the sun's light, but seemed to glow from within.

What kind of god could outfit so many skeletons with magic items? If it was only a matter of simple sharpening enchantments, Zaryusu had heard that certain great nations could amass quantities like this after long planning. However, imbuing this many magic weapons with elemental properties and in the variety before him was another matter entirely.

"Children, behold the vassals of the God of Death," Tiamat's soft voice drifted over to them, "If you didn't accept my offer, you would surely be at his mercy."

"I-It can't be. It must be an illusion or something."

As everyone heard those words, a look crossed their faces which seemed to say 'What kind of rubbish are you spouting?'

Even if their enemy was not moving, they could feel in their bones that this was no illusion.

The very aura that emanated from the undead champions created a frightful presence and they could not possibly be mere mirages.

The warrior Lizardmen panicked as the skeletal army advanced as one with measured steps. Some of them even hissed in warning.

To Zaryusu, the oddest thing was their movements.

It was not a prelude to battle.

The Lizardmen were thrown into panic at the sheer number alone. It was only by the presence of their Goddess that they did not turn their tail and run.

Just as Zaryusu and Shasuryu were about to command the panicking Lizardmen to calm down, a powerful shout had swallowed the marsh and all their focus was fixed towards the Red Goddess before them.

"Do not be afraid!"

Their eyes settled on the Goddess.

"Do not be afraid," she repeated.

The only thing that could be heard in the deathly silence was her confident, dignified voice, echoing in their ears.

"It's alright," she said firmly, as she gently touched one of the Lizardmen who was scared out of his wits.

Her gentle hand was as warm as the sunlight.

"I will protect all of you, so do not be afraid."

The Goddess passed through the quiet Lizardmen and came to Zaryusu's side.

"I promised, didn't I?"

In the face of their Goddess, the Lizardmen felt most of their fear vanish. The enemy may be a god, but they had a deity protecting them as well. Some were emboldened to the point that they began to devise battle plans with their neighbors.

But they had no time to waste.

With perfect coordination, the skeletons split in two from the center, leaving a space between them that was roughly twenty skeletons in width.

Then they finally saw it.

It wore a black robe, and radiated the dreadful aura of Death. It looked similar to the Elder Lich that they had fought yesterday.

However, the key difference between the two was their power.

Zaryusu had instantly felt it. His instincts told him of the massive difference between the two undead casters. It was as if the difference was between a warrior and an infant.

It was an avatar of Undeniable Death.

"Th-The Ruler of Death…" the words slipped from Zaryusu's mouth without him knowing.

The Death God raised his arms and an indescribably complicated hemisphere with translucent sigils appeared, glowing with a bluish-white light. The sigils shifted with bewildering speed, changing to a completely different formula with each passing moment.

The shape of the clear blue light changed continuously, illuminating the surrounding with its radiance.

All of the Lizardmen clenched their weapons and fists in anxiety. They had never seen any spell like the one being cast before them.

For it could be nothing but a spell of the gods.

"What is that?"

"I, I don't know. I don't know what that is either—" Crusch, who was knowledgeable in magic, replied, sounding a little afraid. Zaryusu looked at her in shock; even Crusch with her extensive knowledge of magic was frightened of this unknown phenomenon.

Zaryusu comforted her with a pat.

Circular fragments transformed into countless motes of light which flew to the sky and spread in the air—

"Get away from the lake!" their Goddess shouted out.

—And the lake froze over.

As soon as they heard of her warning, they had immediately scampered away from the edge of the water and onto higher ground.

There were individuals who were extraordinarily gifted in their respective fields. Shasuryu, the outstanding chief, Cruch, the incredibly talented druid, and Zaryusu, the widely travelled, but even they couldn't comprehend what was happening at the moment.

Some of the Lizardmen who were not fast enough got their feet stuck in the ice and screamed in pain.

It was cold, so cold that their legs immediately became brittle and snapped. Their wails of pain echoed throughout the marsh.

The scene before their eyes was too horrific to bear.

The Goddess urgently pulled out the ones who were stuck, and when she did so, Zaryusu instantly went to help her.

Fire flared in her hand as she tried to melt the ice around their legs, and fortunately the ice rapidly broke down. The stumps however, remained frozen.

Once each and every one of them were far away from the lake, the Goddess ordered, "Crusch, heal them."

"Y-Yes!" the albino lizard woman went to work instantly, closing their wounds and mending their shattered bones.

The red Goddess opened up her wings and flew up. "It seems that the entire lake has turned into ice…" she muttered softly, but they all caught what she had said.

Zayusu was dumbstruck by the ridiculous words the Goddess had uttered.

It was impossible to imagine that such a huge lake, a lake that he was familiar with since childhood, was frozen solid. Yet the glistening ice before his eyes said otherwise.

A surge of fear for the fish farms momentarily ran through him, but he shook his head, disappointed in himself.

'_This is not the time to worry about that,_' he chastised himself.

"Get them up here!" his brother Shasuryu bellowed.

The warrior Lizardmen who could still move worked together to extricate their fallen friends from the frozen swamp.

Those who had collapsed were ghastly pale and shook uncontrollably from the cold, their vitality sapped from the deathly chill.

From above, the Goddess threw her arm outward while muttering some indecipherable phrase, casting a host of golden orbs that circled the area where the Lizardmen were huddling together. When Zaryusu looked closely at the orbs, he realized they did not burn. The spheres floated gently above the ground and into his body, its warmth transmitted across his entire being.

It seemed that the flames were some sort of Divine Blessing that shielded their bodies from the cold.

Zaryusu looked at the airborne deity, who was gazing across the pond with a serene expression on her face as if she was waiting for something.

Her red hair bellowed with the wind, and from her back, Zaryusu could see two powerful Dragon wings holding her up.

Even though she was just standing there, she looked picturesque and divine.

Zaryusu gulped as the realization washed over him.

If the Goddess was not here, all of them would already be dead.

How foolish they were to think that they could defeat the Ruler of Death by themselves.

Zaryusu exhaled, as if to expel the worries within himself.

Could they really win in this fight? Could she defeat the Ruler of Death by herself?

No.

He would do anything to help. He wouldn't let the Goddess fight on her own.

"He's here…" the Goddess whispered. "Finally."

As soon as she said those words, Zaryusu squinted into the distance.

The Ruler of Death who had frozen the lake raised the hand which was not holding the fearsome staff and waved it at the village.

But what he saw next surprised him even more.

"W-What is that!" the voices came from everywhere in the village.

Before Zaryusu's eyes was a massive statue made out of stone. Its sturdy, slab-like chest pulsed with a red light, like a heartbeat. Its limbs were thick and stubby.

It moved slowly and produced a gigantic boulder out of nowhere.

And then it tossed the boulder right into them.

Zaryusu shielded his eyes reflexively. At the speed the rock was flying, certain death awaited anyone who was hit by the huge projectile.

He peeked above a split second before he closed his eyes, and saw that the Goddess had not moved an inch.

Instead, she raised her hand and a golden sphere, similar to what they had seen before, enveloped part of the lake. The golden sphere was as high as she was in the skies, and wide enough to envelope the entirety of the Lizardmen Tribes.

When the boulder landed, the earth shuddered and a tremendous shockwave assaulted them. Zaryusu himself felt the tremors in his world of darkness.

But then another loud crash was heard, the sound similar to a wave crashing against the cliffs.

When Zaryusu slowly opened his eyes, he saw that the boulder had been aimed towards the lake, and the impact had brought up a huge wave of thick ice and water that would have washed away the entire village.

Yet, it was stopped by the spherical golden wall with ease.

The water receded from the land and returned to the lake, frozen once more.

The huge rock now stood between the two forces. The undead troops approached the rock, and then fell to one knee after raising their shields as if to block the sky. The other skeletons jumped up on those shields, nimbly maintaining their balance, as they raised their shields as well.

In that moment, Zaryusu realized what the enemy was doing. The unimaginable terror grew even greater.

"Don't tell me…" Shasuryu voiced his thoughts in despair. "Stairs…? They're using a legendary army like that as stairs?!"

The skeletons drew close to the giant rock with startling speed and the staircase formed by the undead army finally took shape.

Then the other undead soldiers made their move, their movements more refined than the previous skeletons. They held lances with banners attached.

The bright red cloth of their banners were embroidered with the same sigil.

Their capes rippled in the wind, as the undead marched into the marsh with immaculate coordination. The ice crunched under their feet as they advanced in silence. Then, another group of skeletons marched onto the marsh with the same fluid movements. They crossed their lances with the warriors opposite of them.

The crossed lances formed a passage which led to the huge rock.

"...A Royal Procession?"

Zenberu was right.

The Ruler of Death walked down the path made by the undead. The silhouettes of several people were visible behind it. Nobody had noticed their arrival.

He was dressed in a black robe that seemed to be made of Darkness itself, and an ebony radiance emanated from the staff he carried. That radiance shaped itself into the tormented faces of the damned which dissolved and disappeared into nothing before appearing once more in their everlasting suffering. Beneath his hood the Lizardmen could clearly see the face that they would later describe as Death itself.

A skeletal face with empty eye sockets that emitted a beacon of red light.

He was adorned with countless items of magical jewelry, the likes of which were beyond Zaryusu's comprehension. He strode forth with the air of a monarch.

Behind him, the people who seemed to be his confidantes formed a line, looking at the village as though they were waiting for something.

The Goddess silently watched the whole procession as her eyebrows ticked with annoyance.

"What a showoff…" she quietly muttered, a wry smile on her face.

What was going on? The hearts of all the Lizardmen were filled with trepidation.

"Goddess-sama, should we be prepared to run?" Crusch asked, her voice utterly devoid of fighting spirit. Her drooping tail spoke volumes about the despair in her heart.

The Goddess looked down on her and smiled. She landed in front of Crusch and gently petted her head.

"No, there's no need for that," she said with a smile, as she tried her best to reassure Crusch. "I will talk to him by myself."

Zaryusu immediately rebutted. "No! We will fight together with you!"

The Goddess turned her head to look at Zaryusu, and even though she was a head shorter than Zaryusu, her gaze was so intimidating that Zaryusu was unable to say another word.

"There will be no fighting," she said with a sense of finality. "If you fought with him or any of his army, your death is guaranteed."

Zaryusu gulped, noticing how parched his throat was, despite the chill emanating from the frozen lake.

"You will stay behind me with Pentakrisis at all times. If anything happens, Pentakrisis will hold them back so you can escape."

"B-But…!"

Shasuryu put his hand on Zaryusu's shoulder, "I understand, then if anything happens we will make preparations to run."

Zaryusu turned around, ready to give a scathing retort, because such cowardice was against the Lizardmen fighting spirit and common decency. What kind of scum would abandon their savior in their most dire moment?

But one look from his brother silenced whatever he was going to say next.

"Zaryusu, have faith."

"What? It's not like I don't have it, Ani-ja!"

"From the beginning, the Goddess had offered what she could to us, but we refused to take it. If we didn't challenge her in the first place, we would still have some of our stamina to at least fight till our last breath."

A look of understanding dawned on Zaryusu's face.

"Now all we can do is put our faith in her," Shasuryu continued.

Through all of this, Zaryusu had not looked at the Lizardmen. He only looked at the danger in front of them, examining the Incarnation of Death atop that huge rock.

When he finally looked around, he could see that the Lizardmen around him had lost all of their fighting spirit and energy.

The woman and children stared at threat in front of them, completely powerless. The warriors had all exhausted themselves from the previous one-sided fight with the Goddess.

His brother was right…

How ignorant was he to think that they could survive against this monstrosity.

He turned his head and saw the King of Death observing the Lizardmen from his place atop the throne. The dark elves did not seem particularly hostile, but their eyes were fixated on the Goddess. The silver-haired girl looked as if she was outraged when she saw that the Goddess laid her hand on top of Crusch. The creepy insectoid's expression was unreadable, and the tailed man's glasses hid any emotion that could be read from them.

It was frightening that he couldn't even gauge his opponent's strength.

"—Don't be afraid."

Like a beacon in the darkness the Goddess's voice resounded in all of them. It was as if she could read their minds.

Her words drove all the Lizardmen to stand up straight and thrust out their chests.

"I'll be going now. Remember, if anything happens, _run_," she warned them.

They all nodded, understanding the implications of her warning.

"B-Be careful!" Crusch pleaded, and at the heartfelt plea, the Goddess smiled at her.

"Thank you," and then she flew away towards the lake.

As soon as she left, her white dragon took her place, and with that they all started to make their preparations.

( º﹃º )

Ainz who was sitting on the makeshift throne on the boulder in the middle of the lake watched the whole interaction with interest.

It seemed that their plan was working, for now at least.

All he had to do was to think about the next step.

He waited for Tiamat to approach the boulder, and when she did, he grinned internally.

"Finally," he said to no one in particular, but the Guardians had definitely heard what he said.

And they agreed, the Lizards were far too pathetic. They didn't even do anything, yet it took a lot of convincing from Lady Tiamat to be able to calm them down.

If they were honest, her interaction with the Lizardmen had irked them.

It wasn't that they hated the fact that she interacted with them, it was the fact that the filthy lizards looked as if they deserved her gentle words and touches. When she smiled at them, they knew the feeling that flared within their hearts.

_Envy_.

The biting fury came to them in waves. Anger, jealousy, and resentment combined into one. It was like someone had stolen someone precious to them, and they hated it.

Shalltear gritted her teeth, the twins looked at the Lizardmen in disdain, and even though Cocytus and Demiurge didn't show it, they knew that they were also affected by the petty feelings. But the one who was affected the most was Albedo.

Even though she was standing here with a smile on her face, they could clearly remember that after the meeting where the Supreme Beings laid out all their plans had been concluded, Albedo had excused herself to punch the ground just outside of Nazarick. She later called Mare for a favor to fix the damage she had done.

Just when they had learned how to _share_ with each other...

Lady Tiamat belonged to Nazarick and Nazarick only. Her gentle touches and smiles belonged only to _them_.

Ainz looked at them in the same way a parent would look at their child throwing a tantrum. He admitted to himself that he would've been jealous too if not for the statement Tiamat had made earlier.

'_I think it's the dragon in me, but they look so adorable!'_

He let out a tired smile inside his mind. Even from afar, he could see her treating the Lizardmen the same way one of his old guildmate lovingly treated their pet.

'_Honestly, even in a situation like this, she manages to bring some sense of normalcy…'_

Ainz looked back at his beloved children. They tried their best to hide their ire in front of the Supreme Being, but he could see the frustration that bubbled underneath their veneer of calmness.

But at this point, there was nothing that they could do. To them, this was the plan that both Supreme Beings had made to subjugate the Lizardmen peacefully.

However, Ainz-sama and Lady Tiamat didn't specify anything about giving them a taste of _absolute hell_.

* * *

**Canon Omake: Unusual Friendship**

* * *

Pandora's Actor.

A creation of Momonga himself, born to preserve the identity of Ainz Ooal Gown; the one who bore the heavy duty of bearing the images of his guild members.

He had a liking for managing magic items and his Vater had made him in such a way so that he would not find it strange to be alone in the Treasury. But for some reason, his obsession for cataloging items seemed to have reached the level of a fetish.

If a speck of dust somehow managed to land on one of the treasures he had just cleaned up, he would do the cleaning round all over again.

To him, seeing the treasures glimmer under the light was an absolute pleasure.

So his schedule consisted of managing the finances of Nazarick—something he found easy to do, then clean, clean, clean.

Then he would stretch, maybe polish, and clean once more.

But he realized, even though he found pleasure in cleaning up all the treasures, he had nothing to do. When the treasures were all impeccably spotless, he felt empty.

That feeling changed when Lady Tiamat visited his floor with one of the Guardians of the sixth floor.

Lady Tiamat promised to visit once every week, and she abided by that promise, bringing Mare everytime she came to visit.

When she didn't, Mare visited him all by himself as they had lunch together.

At first, it was awkward between the two of them, because Lady Tiamat was the one who carried all the conversations while the two of them were content with listening and jumping into the conversation every once in a while.

So awkward that one day Mare had brought a book to eat with him during lunch, hiding himself behind that thick tome of his.

One day, Pandora's Actor noticed the title of the book.

Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth.

"Is that book about Lady Tiamat?" he curiously asked.

The dark elf who hid himself behind the pages every time finally looked him in the face and smiled so brightly that it was almost blinding.

"Y-Yes, this book is about L-Lady T-Tiamat," he answered with joy etched on every word.

"What is it about?"

"Y-You never read t-this book before?" Mare asked, and Pandora's Actor shook his head.

"No, sadly my job doesn't allow me to go outside the treasury that often."

"O-Oh…" the dark elf boy looked dejected all of a sudden.

"B-But its fine! _Wenn es meines Gottes Wille ist!_" he stood up and saluted.

The boy's mismatched eyes looked at him in confusion.

Shame washed over Pandora's Actor as he slowly squatted to sit back in his chair.

"I-If you want, I could l-lend this to you," Mare offered.

"Ja wirklich?" he said in disbelief.

"I-I don't understand a word you said, b-but you can start with this book first. I-I'll come back a week later and b-bring you another b-book?"

"_Danke_!" the egghead gratefully replied, and started to flip through the book with new found eagerness.

The two sat in a tranquil silence broken only by the sound of pages flipping. Pandora's Actor soaked up the lore in the pages as he was steadily filled with surprise at the amount of staggering information held in the book. He had never known that their Lady had been through so much.

He wondered if his Vater's book was just as bountiful. He would have to ask Mare after he finished reading this book.

He never imagined that such a book would hold so much treasure at every page.

It was like finding a treasure chest filled with gold, crowns, and priceless jewelry. Surprise was evident on his face with every page he flipped.

He might have found a new treasure to obsess over.

Pandora's Actor looked to his side at the dark elf guardian reading with him. Mare saw him staring, and glanced up with a nervous smile.

Mare had never seen anyone visit Ashurbanipal as much as he did, since he frequently visited to read everything in Nazarick's vast collection. So his lips turned up into a small smile when he realized that another Guardian might have the same hobby as he did.

He started pointing out one paragraph of the book in particular, and Pandora's Actor listened to everything with interest.

"T-This is my f-favorite part, when Lady Tiamat—"

And thus an unusual friendship was born.

A boy who proudly made a new friend by himself.

And an egghead who found out that treasures were not just limited to what was inside the Treasury.

* * *

**The Reality Behind Suzuki Satoru **

* * *

He was walking home after he another long day of working.

The gas mask he was wearing was stuffy as usual, but he couldn't care less.

That was because there was a certain incident in his office that made him angry.

One of his co-workers had been working himself to the bone, and ended up collapsing with a nose bleed. He had seen his co-worker's eyes were baggy from lack of sleep, and the pale complexion of his skin led Suzuki to suggest that he should just rest instead of pushing himself over the limit.

But he didn't take his advice.

Suzuki gritted his teeth.

As he slowly walked home to his run-down apartment, his mind kept going back to that incident in the office.

Oftentimes they were working so hard that they used their break time to sleep, dozing off in their chairs like a puppet whose strings have been cut.

And now this.

He recalled the moment where his co-worker collapsed in front of him, his body going slack as gravity brought it down. Although he had expected it, he couldn't suppress the surprise that escaped to his face when it happened.

His teeth grinded with fury.

In a short burst of emotion, he punched the wall beside him _hard_.

"Ou...ch…" he held his fist in his hands, regretting the impulsive decision.

His right fist was pulsing with pain, and he clutched it tenderly.

"Oww...I shouldn't have hit it so hard," he sighed. "And I ended up skipping the free bread from Hannah-san's bakery today…"

Once he finally reached his apartment, he inserted the keys into the knob and turned it open.

"I'm hom—" he stopped himself.

He was welcomed by a cold, dark, room, devoid of any emotion.

Silencing himself, he went inside, put his shoes away to slip into his house slippers, dropped his office bag into the table, and turned on the lights.

Opening the clutches of his mask, he finally exhaled a sigh of relief as the ventilation in his apartment started to work their magic.

The usual sight of his apartment greeted him. A simple complex where the kitchen and the living room was combined, and the bedroom and bathroom were linked together.

His furniture was not fancy either. All he had were a couple of metal chairs over a simple metal table. It was clear that one chair was unused, but was clean nonetheless, while the other one looked broken.

The poor chair was mended countless times, and in the end it only stood on its own three legs instead of the usual four. He had to replace the other one sooner or later, but he shoved that thought into the back of his mind.

He immediately went to the refrigerator and opened it. As the light of the refrigerator turned on, a half empty plastic water bottle and a couple of pre-prepared rations was all he could see.

Taking out his prepared ration for the day's dinner—the bland stuff was almost impossible to swallow—he choked it down with a gulp of water. He wasn't so poor that he couldn't afford better food, but he simply saw no point in wasting money on such luxuries.

He sighed once again, running his hand through his hair in regret. "Fuck, I should've gone to the bakery afterall."

At least Hannah-san would give him a piece of bread for free.

Suzuki took a look at his unused kitchen, soiled and filled with dust. But then he looked away. He never had the opportunity to cook anyways. It didn't matter.

He turned around and went into his room, where his other world awaited.

This is a tale of a certain man.

Who had a certain hobby.

Who had a good life, and also…

A mother who worked tirelessly for her kid until she collapsed.

* * *

**A/N: The Guardians jelly their mommy show affection to other kids. LMAO. EVERYTHING I WROTE ABOUT MARE IS SO CUTE, WHY! WHY ARE YOU SO CUTEEEEEE! YOU ARE SO ADORBS! *pinches cheeks with absolute might* Did no one actually realize that the Collection of Ashurbanipal is a fanfic, within a fanfic? #meta #breakingwalls**

**Hackslashbash: I'm pretty hyped to write more lore pages for the guild members. Sadly, it may take a bit of time, so don't get too excited. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

**CHAPTER 22 IS OUT ON DISCORD!**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range**r**efreshing **d**rink** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	21. CHAPTER 21: Trust Exercises

**A/N: Thank you Razel Treasure for betaing this chapter!**

**It has come to our attention that one of our readers has attacked YamiAlex. We want to make it clear that we DO NOT condone that sort of behavior within our community, and that his views do not reflect ours. We **_**sincerely**_** apologize to YamiAlex for allowing this incident to happen, and we will take steps to ensure that this doesn't become a repeat occurrence.**

**With that being said, we have reached 300 reviews, AMAZING! Thank you, **_Gross (Guest)_**, for reviewing as the 300th reviewer! Please continue loving this story for a long long time :D**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal**

**Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth**

**Chapter III: Wanderer**

She limped across the deathfields of Helheim.

To her this much pain was nothing. It was nothing compared to the pain of being abandoned by her dearest brothers and sisters once their cursed father banished her.

None of them lifted a claw to help her as she _begged _for them to stand by her.

She had to learn to do everything on her own, until one day she met someone she would eventually come to call friend.

A silent sob wracked the dragon's body as she thought back to how she got into such a situation.

Her friend had asked for help in retrieving an ancient artifact in the forsaken lands. They had transversed across countless unforgiving realms in search of the item.

Their search had led them across the myriad lands of the World Tree; even the strongholds of the humans.

Finally, they found the artifact in the undead infested territory of Helheim.

They fought with tooth and nail through the untiring horde, struggling to reach the grail they had so desperately looked for.

At long last, the horde was vanquished. The impossible was done.

Her friend reached out for the goal they had so tirelessly fought for.

An arrow infused with celestial power pierced her hand. The friend cried out in pain, looking around in panic for the source of the arrow.

Tiamat, for that was the dragon's name, looked up.

Above them, sneering, was a host of angels bearing the banner of "Seraphim".

The two tried to defend themselves from the onslaught of holy magic that only immortals could wield.

Their efforts were in vain. Even the might of the dragon and her fight was like chaff in the angelic maelstrom.

In her last moments, the dragon's friend pushed her out of the way.

"_Live," _her friend whispered, smiling as even her atoms were incinerated.

Tiamat wept as she ran away. Far, far away from the friend who sacrificed herself for her.

They had spent their time together, for both had been casted away and deemed worthless. The ruthless world they dwelled in became much more bearable with the other by their side.

But now that friend was dead.

The dragon sobbed in grief, having lost something that could never be recovered.

* * *

**Chapter 21: Trust Exercise**

* * *

Zaryusu tightly held onto Crusch as their eyes trailed after the Goddess who flew away.

They watched as she slowly landed on the surface of the lake and they watched as the Undead King's entourage eyed her. Weirdly enough, the bizarre group's eyes held no animosity as they looked at her.

Instead, Zaryusu was the first one to be vaguely aware that their animosity was directed at _them_.

Just then, Shasuryu spoke up.

"I'm sorry…"

Zaryusu was shocked to hear those words.

"What are you sorry for, Ani-ja?"

"I'm sorry for being an incapable leader. I know just how much you resent me by saying that we need to run away."

"Ani-ja, I understand. What use is pride when there is not a single man left?"

Even if they ran away, the tribe could still survive and fight. The shame would be the loss of the opportunity that had been presented before them. As long as they took that, from his point of view, he would have no regrets even if he died.

Zaryusu was a traveller. He had been prepared for death and there would be no regret in his death either. His death wouldn't harm the unity of the Lizardmen.

"Even so, I'm sorry."

The two of them saw when the Goddess finally arrived at the center of the lake, just in front of the boulder.

When she finally reached the stairway of the undead which led to the throne, they had expected the Undead to initiate the conversation.

Among many species, there was a practice of superior beings overlooking inferior ones. The Undead God undeniably sat atop the boulder because of his disdain for them.

It was clear that it had no intention to speak to her on even terms.

From the moment the array of enemies had piled up in front of them, Zaryusu concluded that their prior victory held no meaning whatsoever and was nothing more than child's play to the enemy.

Even so, she still walked towards her impending death with her head high. There was no hesitation in her stride; it was as if she was showing him every last inch of the dignity she possessed.

There was no response. The Undead merely swiveled his head to regard her from atop his throne, eyeing her with no reservation whatsoever. There was no sign that he was going to do anything at all.

The person who finally spoke was the Demoness with jet black hair.

"Our master feels you have not adopted a sufficiently respectful listening posture," she said, her voice heard throughout the entire clearing.

Zaryusu who was listening intently opened his jaw wide with disbelief

"W-What?"

"—Demiurge," she called out to the tailed being who looked like a human male.

"**Kneel.**"

Zaryusu and Shasuryu suddenly fell to their knees, along with the rest of the warriors who were standing up. Their heads sunk into the ground as they lost control over their bodies.

The cold mud caked their bodies as they tried to resist the inevitable.

They could not stand. No matter how hard they tried, their bodies would not budge an inch. It was as though a pair of huge invisible hands were pressing the freedom out of their bodies.

"**Do not resist.**"

In the instant that all-powerful voice filtered into their ears again, Zaryusu and Shasuryu felt as though their bodies had suddenly grown an additional brain—an organ that received commands from the voice and forced their bodies to obey.

He saw the powerless forms of his tribesmen kneeling pathetically in the mud, but from the corners of his eyes, he could see the Goddess standing tall, completely unaffected.

It seemed that the tailed man was irked by that fact, and he ordered once again.

"**Kneel!**"

The Lizardmen's heads were buried even deeper into the ground, and all of them felt as if they were being crushed. Children cried under the intense pressure as their mothers could only watch in torment.

Seeing that his mysterious power could not bind the Goddess, he clicked his tongue in annoyance and looked at the Goddess intently.

"I said **Kne**—"

"That is enough," the Undead finally said.

The tailed man bowed and returned to his previous position.

"What are you doing here, Tiamat?" he asked, his orbs flared red as if he was disturbed by her very presence.

'_So she wasn't lying about her name…' _Zaryusu thought as his entire body was pressed against the cold ground.

"You know why I'm here…" she softly said to him, her tone carrying a hint of sadness.

Zaryusu knew that speaking up would be unwise, so he kept his mouth shut as he listened to their conversation.

"Leave, or you'll end up like them," the Death God threatened, a dreadful aura emitting from his being.

The Lizardmen struggled harder upon hearing those words.

Zaryusu could see in front of them that even the Dragon the Goddess had brought with her had a hard time standing. Although it didn't drop to the ground like they did, he could see that it was definitely struggling to keep itself upright in the face of the Death God's presence.

"I won't leave," she said firmly. "I promised them that I would give them my protection."

"Why?"

"They are mine now. They have sworn to devote themselves to me."

At those words, the silver haired girl behind the Death God frowned, while the demoness's smile grew wider as her eyes burned in otherworldly fury. One of the twins almost jumped over the boulder only to be stopped by the feminine looking one. The insect let out a cold breath and the tailed man only raised his glasses.

Perhaps they were displeased that the Goddess spoke to their master without any honorifics?

But Zaryusu remembered when the Goddess said they were old friends.

The Undead continued speaking.

"Even though you know about the catastrophe that is about to befall them?"

As Zaryusu heard the Death God's question, a deep seated sense of despair filled him like it was the end of the world.

Even though he didn't know what kind of catastrophe would fall upon them, he could only conclude that the disaster must be big enough that the Ruler of Death himself would bother to show them mercy and decide to end them early rather than let them suffer.

A calamity so great that a god decided to dispatch his army.

Straining his muscles against the mysterious power that was holding him down on the ground, Zaryusu struggled to lift his neck to behold the army that was arrayed in a grand display.

Perhaps they should die instead…

"Z-Zaryusu…" Crusch who was on the floor next to him moaned his name in pain.

Slowly, he looked at his mate.

Her eyes were slowly tearing up from fear and thoughts of what the Undead would do to them.

But he could see it in Crusch's eyes.

The glowing fighting spirit within those red eyes, as if to say, even if they had to run away to survive, she would gladly do so.

A sense of shame washed over Zaryusu.

How could he decide on his own that they deserved to die? What gave him the right to do that?

When the Goddess was negotiating with the Ruler of Death, he himself had decided that it would be best if they all died.

It was pathetic.

_He_ was pathetic.

"I will not surrender," the Goddess's voice rang out with clarity.

The weight of her words were so strong that they washed away all the negative thoughts in his mind

'_That's right...I still have a future with Crusch, a future where we can be together._'

"There are other ways to avoid the coming catastrophe besides a massacre. Since they're now part of my brood, I will take care of them as if they were my own," as the Goddess said that, some of the Death God's entourage hissed with displeasure. Despite the clear hostility, she continued, "If you want to lay your hands on them...well, you'll have to go through me first."

Silence rang in the air.

Suddenly, someone laughed. A laugh so sadistic and cruel that Zaryusu shivered in fear. He twisted his head to look up at the source of the voice only to see the Undead laughing uproariously as if he had heard something hilarious, only to stop suddenly.

"You think you stand against my army?" he replied callously. "You, who are standing here by yourself, you think you can accomplish such a feat?" he pointed his bony fingers at her.

Zaryusu and Shasuryu were so shocked that they could not speak.

It was clear that the only reason why the Undead was not attacking them was because of the presence of the Goddess. He hadn't even seen them as something threatening in the first place.

They were going up against someone with power to bend the world to his whims. No wonder why the Goddess had told them to run away…

This was the kind of mighty being who was their opponent.

Zaryusu gritted his teeth.

They were weak, so weak. How arrogant he was to think that no one could defeat the Lizardmen tribe when they were all united.

But despite all that, the Goddess flapped her wings in a burst of speed and flew upwards, almost eye to eye with the Undead who was sitting on his throne.

And then he felt the air heating up.

"_『__Invocation of Esh-Baal__』__," _he heard the Goddess whisper as a wave of flames washed over the lake.

The fire, however, didn't reach them.

The golden light bathed the entire lake, and the ice gently cracked as it combined with the water beneath it. The rising water reached some of the Lizardmen, but had not risen enough to submerge them. The fire had been reflected in the water, and its surface reflected the radiance even more.

The scene in front of them was beautiful despite the terror they felt.

"I don't know if I'll succeed, but I will die trying. Wouldn't I be the greatest gift of all to you if I die? You'll finally have someone to stay by your side forever."

Zaryusu looked at the Goddess in shock, wondering what her words meant.

The Undead God froze in his throne for a moment, seemingly as shocked as Zaryusu.

The two deities stared at each other, the overwhelming might of their existences pressing down on Zaryusu in a way he had never felt, until the Undead God finally spoke to the Goddess.

"I will give you a year. If you can improve their quality of life within that time, I will spare them all," he said, waving a hand over their prone forms, and the Lizardmen could feel the tension being released from their bodies. "I will assign my trusted aide to overlook your progress. Cocytus, step up."

"Yes. Master." the blue monster said.

"I only need six months," their Goddess said confidently.

"Hmph, don't be too arrogant. I'd love to see you put up some resistance. It would be boring if you fail afterall. Victory comes far too easily for me," the Undead said with a scoff.

Zaryusu cursed in his heart.

It was as if the Death God knew that the Goddess would fail.

However, she didn't say a word.

"If that is all you wish to say then I look forward to the events in six months time," the Undead said casually. "I'll see you when the first flower bloom in the fields. Watching them is your favorite past time after all—『Gate』."

Having said his piece, the Undead waved his hand and and a hemisphere of darkness appeared in front of the throne while the Dragoness scoffed.

'_What a dramatic line.'_ She thought to herself.

"Farewell, Lizardmen," the Skeletal Overlord stepped through the gate to the abyss.

His entourage followed him into the hemisphere.

"**Releasing Control.** It seems that we will meet again, Goddess-sama," The tailed man bowed as if he was familiar with her.

Finally, the tailed man stepped into the darkness. There was a gentle sound, and the force binding them vanished.

Zaryusu and Shasuryu remained kneeling in the mud where they had been abandoned, without the strength to even stand up.

The trauma they had just experienced exceeded by far any physical pain they may have felt.

But they survived.

"W-We did it…" Crusch was the first one to speak, tears glistening in her eyes. "We survived…?"

The Goddess turned around to look at them.

"Yes, we did," she said with a smile. "Well done, children."

Exclamations of joy spread across the Lizardmen as relief and happiness mixed into one. Mothers hugged their children with a sense of gratefulness, happy that they could spend another day with their loved ones, and the husbands enveloped their entire families in a hug.

But there was one person in particular that they had to thank.

"Thank you, Goddess-sama!"

"Goddess-sama!"

"We are very grateful to you!"

They started kneeling to the ground in respect to her. If she wasn't here, who would have known what could've happened to them.

"Please, do not thank me. From this point onward we have a lot of work to do," she pulled one of the Lizardmen up to stand but they fell to the ground again in reverence.

Zaryusu shakily rose to his feet and prostrated himself before her. Crusch hurriedly rushed to follow suit.

Even though she had single-handedly negotiated with such a scary opponent, she didn't falter, she didn't give up, but most importantly, she wasn't arrogant.

She, who was so small compared to the Lizardmen, carried the pride of the Lizardmen on her back.

Something that even he could not do in the face of fear.

Zaryusu fully understood now.

The being in front of him was nothing less than a god.

"Goddess-sama..."

Zaryusu felt her look away uncomfortably from their postures, as if she was unused to the worship.

Seriously, what a humble Goddess.

"Please grant the Lizardmen prosperity."

"**Please accept our eternal loyalty,"** they all said together. Their resolute voices echoed through the silent marsh.

(o´・ω・｀)ﾉ

Tiamat spent the rest of her day with Titus, the chief librarian. The smell of books comforted her as Titus led the way to the section of the library containing books about raising fish among the wide collection of Ashurbanipal.

"Thank you, Titus."

"T'was my honor," and with that he took her to a table before leaving her alone to read.

Tiamat looked at the title of the book: Manual Fish Farm Construction, a 2012 edition and proceeded to skim through the entire thing.

From what she read, they only required simple equipment such as picks, hoes, and shovels; all things she could create with 『Create Lesser Item』or with assistance from blacksmith to create those items if necessary.

The size of the farm shouldn't exceed four-hundred square meters, small enough that the Lizardmen and her could finish digging it out in a day.

But from what she had read, it seemed that this only related to individual fish farms instead of feeding an entire village. She needed to make bigger plans it seemed.

Once she finished reading the book, she went to find Ainz in his office. Teleporting by using the 『Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown』, she finally landed in the familiar room.

"Hm, Tia?" Ainz looked up from his paperwork. "Do you need something?"

Ainz was sitting at his usual desk accompanied by Albedo by his side. Tiamat's eyes trailed to the side, looking at the stacks of paper he had on his desk, and saw that he was busy.

"Err, sorry," Tiamat said, feeling apologetic. "I didn't realize you were preoccupied. I'm going to come back lat—"

"No, it's fine," he said firmly, putting his quill down, giving her his undivided attention. "What do you need?"

Tiamat eyed Albedo, and once Albedo gave her a gentle nod, telling her that it was alright, she approached his desk, standing to his left.

"I was looking for ways to fix the food shortage problem for the Lizardmen village. I think we could make a fish farm to solve this issue."

Ainz eyed the book, taking it in his hand, and skimmed through the entire tome in a blitz.

"It seems that it would take some time to construct this. How do you plan to solve the current food shortage issue until this is made?"

Tiamat thought long and hard.

"Maybe I could ask the blacksmith to build some sort of net so that Pentakrisis could fish, and drop the fish at the village?"

"I think that would be hard to do. It would waste a lot of time for the blacksmith to build a net, especially if they need food for now," he enunciated.

"Ah, you're right…" Tiamat realized. "There's always 『Create Greater Item』, but I think it would be a waste to use it on a net that will only be used once in a while."

"As long as the item could be of use to Nazarick, then its fine. But there is no activity within Nazarick that requires the use of net," Ainz looked at Albedo.

"That's right, Ainz-sama. Seeing that a net has a very specific use, I would assume that it would be more useful at the Lizardmen village instead of Nazarick," she confirmed.

Tiamat put a hand on her chin, "Hmm, how can we feed them until we finished building the fish farms…" she pondered.

Ainz crosses his arm, thinking of the same thing.

"An item that is useful to Nazarick, that can feed the Lizardmen for a certain period of time, without wasting Nazarick's resources…" Tiamat continued.

Albedo just watched, smiling from the sidelines.

Tiamat looked at Ainz who was also thinking hard on how they could solve the issue. He raised his fingers to his skeletal chin, deep in thought. His eyes flickered every once in a while as he thought of the countless things he had collected in YGGDRASIL.

"Since you're a collector, don't you have any items that could generate food or something?" she asked.

Her mind wandered to the first instance she entered Ainz's room. It was a _mess_. Gold coins, items, and swords were strewn everywhere inside the room. It was impossible for her to see the bed cover because of how much stuff he had.

It seemed that he left his collection displayed in his room, but never had the time to actually organize them.

Tiamat couldn't stand clutter, that was why she decided to do a spring cleaning specifically for Ainz's room. Inspired by her eagerness, all forty-one homunculi maids decided to join in, cleaning the entirety of Nazarick except for the Treasury, and with that, Nazarick looked like it was brand new.

Gone was the mud from the swamps; each marble tile was polished until it glowed. It was as if the Great Tomb of Nazarick had gone through a rebirth.

The event will later led to a tradition where the maids did Spring Cleaning at least once a year.

"After you cleaned my room, I've been having difficulty finding my stuff. But I do think I have an item that is perfect for the Lizardmen. The only problem now is to find where you put it."

"What is it?"

"『Dagda's Cauldron』."

Tiamat was dumbstruck. "There's an item like that in YGGDRASIL?"

"It was a cash item I got from the gacha," Ainz explained. "It would be useful if we ever need to replenish Nazarick's food supplies, but we have to sacrifice a gold coin to use this item."

"A YGGDRASIL gold coin or any kind of gold coin?"

Ainz pondered for a while, "I don't know, we'll have to try it out."

"Okay then, what does it look like?

"It's a cauldron."

Tiamat deadpanned.

"Are you serious? You don't even remember the basic shape of the cauldron? The color? The size?"

"I honestly can't remember."

She could feel the amusement dripping from his voice.

"Are you angry I touched your stuff?" Tiamat asked, confused by his attitude. She knew Ainz could be sassy if he wanted to, but she was curious as to the cause of his...behaviour.

He shook his head, "Angry? No. Irked perhaps. After all, because of you I find it hard to find the items I need."

"My God, you're so spoiled," Tiamat huffed with a smile. She knows Ainz was just messing with her. "Can't you just ask the maid to help look for your stuff?"

"Why should I when _you_ were the one who moved them in the first place?" he challenged.

Tiamat sighed, "Fine, I won't touch them next time."

"You touching them isn't the problem, but if you do, please tell me beforehand."

"I did, but I guess you were dozing off doing paperwork when I told you," Tiamat smirked.

"Oi…" Ainz eyed Albedo warily. He didn't want the Floor Guardians to think that being a guild master was a boring job.

Tiamat giggled at the thought, while Ainz just cleared his non-existent throat.

"With that being said, Albedo, let's leave Ainz to do his job alone. By himself. Without your help," Tiamat smiled sinisterly, "And look for the cauldron in Ainz's room together!"

Albedo jolted at the sudden request as a smile grew on her face. "It'll be a pleasure, My Lady."

Ainz sighed, dejected that he couldn't get a rise out of his Draconic friend. "Yeah, yeah. Just find it quick. I need Albedo to help with Nazarick's Administrative matters."

In the end, it only took Albedo and Tiamat a few minutes to find the cauldron in one of Ainz's cupboards.

Albedo insisted on carrying the cauldron, and placed it on top of the table, the heavy container landing with a dull thump.

The cauldron was smaller than they expected. Tiamat thought it would be as big as a witch's cauldron, heavy and imposing. But this one was shaped like a bowl with carvings on the outside and appeared to be bottomless on the inside.

"A single coin you say?" Tiamat asked while looking to her right where Ainz was sitting in his chair, remembering what he had said previously.

Ainz looked at the Cauldron with interest, "That's right."

The Dragoness huffed, "You should have told me that we had this item in the first place. If you did, I wouldn't have bothered cooking the monster meat from that Pandemonium."

"As I said, it was a gacha item, and seeing that Nazarick had no use for food previously, the thought simply didn't register for me."

Tiamat looked at the cauldron again, inserting her right hand into her sleeve, accessing her inventory. She grabbed two gold coins. One was the first gold coin from the head of the Carne Village, and the second one was a YGGDRASIL gold coin.

"By the way," Ainz asked, "Where did all your adventuring money go?"

"I give it all to Albedo," she simply said.

"How much?"

"Er...I didn't count. I just take jobs and leave. How much did I give you, Albedo?"

"Four platinum coins, forty-one gold coins, three silver coins, and eight copper coins. The money has already been circulated throughout Nazarick, ranging from the salaries of the staff within Nazarick, food expenses, and research materials. The rest of the funds are kept for emergencies and to be saved for another day," Albedo swiftly explained.

Ainz's jaw dropped open as his entire body was briefly tinged in green. "That much? Just how many jobs did you do?"

"Hmm…" Tiamat pondered for a bit, her hand beneath her chin, "Recently I only did two Adamantite quests. The subjugation of monsters after the Pandemonium, and returning the Quagoas. Even though I returned the Quagoas mission back to the guild, they still decided to pay me for it. Before that was the Pandemonium mission, which I got Adamantite and a ton of money from. And before that I just did some low ranking jobs here and there."

"How many did you do?"

"I think I cleaned out the entire board. I kind of remember the Guild Master saying something about fifty three quests in total? I honestly didn't count. Pandemonium was considered an Adamantite quest because of its severity, and the monster and quagoas makes my quest count fifty six in total."

Ainz looked as if he was dumbfounded.

"What?" Tiamat innocently asked.

"Fifty three quests…in a week?"

"Yeah, I joined in with a few low ranking teams here and there. I didn't even sleep after that just so that I could be worthy of _Mythril_," Tiamat remembered.

Her rise as an Adventurer was actually controversial to some Adventurers before the Pandemonium incident. She heard from Antonios that her rising to Mythril actually sparked unsavory rumors where they mentioned that she was seducing Ainzach or something.

She shuddered at the thought.

It was Ainzach who gave her the Charm Potion, and saying disturbing ***.

And _she_ was the one marked as the seductress?

Hell no.

That was why she pushed back the Pandemonium for a week. All so that she could get her reputation back up.

Now that she was Adamantite, things were getting better. She was viewed more positively compared to before, and she got to stay in the Shining Golden Pavilion which was way better than the first inn she had visited.

She shook away the pain and suffering of those days. It was all in the past now, so she shouldn't dwell on it any longer.

"Anyways, why do you ask?"

"Four platinum coins from just three Adamantite quests?" he muttered. "What the _fuck_?" He was once again covered in a green sheen.

"Eh?"

Ainz sighed, completely dejected. No wonder she was more well-known than he was. Who wouldn't be after clearing that many quests in a single week? "And here I am, running wildly for a quest or two while getting half the amount of money you get for your quests."

Tiamat patted his shoulder, "Don't worry about it Momo-chan. If you were running around trying to earn money, then who would take care of Nazarick? Just leave all the income stuff to me!" she proudly pounded her chest.

Ainz coughed as his body glowed an emerald hue. "A-Anyways, I think you should try inputting the local currency."

At her friend's suggestion, Tiamat decided to put the misshapen gold coin from the New World into the Cauldron.

When she did, the bottomless pit of the Cauldron seemed to swallow the whole coin. There was no sound of scraping metal signifying that the coin had landed on the bottom of the bowl; it was deadly silent, as if the coin was swallowed whole.

The whole room watched the Cauldron with interest.

After a few moments, nothing happened.

"I think it's broken," Tiamat broke the silence.

"Nonsense. Gacha items have no durability."

"Either it's broken, or I broke it by putting the New World gold coin in there. Perhaps it only works with YGGDRASIL coins?"

"Then try putting that inside," Ainz suggested.

As she was about to put the intricately carved coinage inside the cauldron, her hand was hit by a flying fish that flew out of the abyss within the cauldron.

"_Jävla Fitta__!"_ she shouted reflexively, jumping away from the Cauldron to hide behind Ainz.

"It works," Ainz said matter-of-factly.

"_Fffffff_, that scared me."

Ainz tilted his head to look down on Tiamat who was hiding behind his right side while tightly clutching his purple robe. Somehow, he felt a sense of loss when she slowly released it from her grasp.

The cold draft within his body returned.

"I never realized you had such a potty mouth," he quipped.

"S-Shush," Tiamat tried to silence him, "It's great that it worked, but…" she looked at the mess on her desk.

Fish was flying everywhere, covering the entire table, and some even flopped away onto the carpet.

When she had travelled to the market near the sea of the Kingdom, she had passed through multiple fish sellers and her nose had furrowed in disgust at the smell.

She never imagined that fish could smell that way. That was why she had been avoiding eating or cooking fish.

Preparing to block her nostrils with the palm of her hand, she stopped when she realized that the fish before her didn't smell so bad.

The distinct smell of ammonia was absent from these fishies.

Ainz immediately went to work.

"Albedo, tell Sous-Chef to store half of these fishes for Nazarick, and tell Cocytus to transport the rest of the Lizardmen."

"Yes, Ainz-sama," Albedo bowed before pulling out a scroll to use 『Message』.

"Well, that worked out pretty well," Tiamat commented.

"We're fortunate that I hoard everything," Ainz joked as she gave him a raised eyebrow.

"Next time, clean your room yourself."

(o´・ω・｀)ﾉ

A mist of chilly air froze the green grass.

Cocytus was walking towards the Sixth Floor hoping that one of the Supreme Beings was on the Sixth Floor, spending her time with the twins as usual.

He walked through the dark corridor of the arena, and was greeted with the screech of Lady Tiamat's baby dragons who noticed the arrival of a newcomer within their territory.

It was his first time seeing Lady Tiamat's baby dragons. He was well aware of their existence, especially when they were trained _personally_ by Aura herself.

If he was not mistaken, Lady Tiamat had also brought back three other dragons for Aura to play with after they had been resurrected by Pestonya. The female Sixth Floor Guardian did mention that they were easier to handle compared to Lady Tiamat's dragons, and now those three were now residing in the icy tundra that was his floor.

Aura had told the Floor Guardians, bragging to be exact, about how Lady Tiamat trusted her with her summons, and about the pure blood of their species, often mentioning how Jötunheimr dragons were among the best Dragons in existence.

He had saw Pentakrisis, the biggest one of them all, yesterday when facing the Lizardmen, and he have to agree with Aura on the majesty of the Dragon Lady Tiamat commanded.

Their scales were as shiny as a polished sword, impenetrable, and _dangerous_. In a way, the Dragons acted as weapons for Lady Tiamat, something Cocytus could respect.

"Ah, Cocytus!" Lady Tiamat waved at him from the VIP viewing box of the Arena, and Cocytus broke out of his pondering. He saw Aura and Mare peeking from the box to look at him. He found their childish qualities quite adorable.

Not that he would ever say it in front of them, of course.

Cocytus nodded at the invitation and made his way up to the VIP section.

Even before he arrived, he saw from a distance that they had just finished having lunch. A cloth was laid out on the stone floor, covered by already empty plates and cups. He could even smell the remnants of the baked goods wafting in the air as the delicious aroma of sugar lingered.

His mandibles clicked in jealousy.

If he had more time on his hands, perhaps Lady Tiamat would invite him to one of her outings as well?

"Welcome to the Sixth Floor, Cocytus!" Aura greeted him, her head turned towards his direction as she was still sitting on the floor

"W-Welcome…" Mare said, following his sister's lead.

He exhaled a cold breath in response.

"Have you had lunch, Cocytus?" Lady Tiamat who was sitting in the middle of the twins asked.

"There. Is. No. Need. For. Me. To. Sustain. Myself. My. Lady." he answered politely with a bow, hiding his true intentions.

"Don't say that," Tiamat chastised him gently. "No army can fight on an empty stomach, and no warrior can fight unless he is fit."

Cocytus stopped in his tracks.

What Lady Tiamat said was indeed accurate.

An army was rather delicate. Its equipment was expensive and so were its soldiers. For an army, that meant their first and foremost importance laid in feeding their troops so that they would be able to fight.

Once again, Lady Tiamat surprised him with her infinite wisdom.

"I'll. Keep. That. In. Mind. My. Lady."

Lady Tiamat just smiled at him, causing a twinge of regret to fester in his heart. He should've just told her he wanted to eat too.

"Well then Aura, Mare, it's time for me to go," the Dragoness said to the twins, patting their heads gently.

"Aww, do you really have to go?" Aura asked with a spoiled tone. Not fit for a Floor Guardian of Nazarick, Cocytus thought to himself.

"Of course, me and Cocytus have to go to the Lizardmen village to settle their food problem after all," Lady Tiamat answered, and Cocytus noted that the dragoness didn't get angry at Aura's spoiled request.

"I-I don't like them…" Mare suddenly said, which shocked Cocytus even more.

Was he the only one who saw how great the Lizardmen were?

'_Perhaps…'_

"That's right! I don't like them either. They are low-levelled monsters anyway. Even Hamsuke is stronger than them."

Lady Tiamat just softly chuckled.

"Are you jealous?"

The simple question made Aura splutter incoherently and Mare looked away with a burning face.

"O-O-Of course not!" Aura shouted out. "Who'd get jealous of low levelled demi-humans anyways?!"

At Aura's response, Lady Tiamat laughed harder. "W-Why are you so cute?" she said between breaths.

"S-Stop teasing us, M-My Lady."

"Aww," Lady Tiamat bear-hugged the twins, Aura on her right and Mare on her left. "I didn't mean to tease you too. I do think that you're my cute children."

At those words, the twins burned up even more but Cocytus noticed that they seemed to relax in her hold, nuzzling even closer to her warmth.

"I still don't like them," Aura pouted.

"Then," the Dragoness raised her fingers up. "Did you know that the Lizardmen are long distant cousins of Dragons?"

"What?!" Aura exclaimed enthusiastically, even Mare's mismatched eyes looked at the Dragoness in disbelief. "No way, the family tree between Dragons and Lizardmen are waaaaay too different."

"It's possible," she replied. "Besides, if Cocytus praises their worth as a fellow warrior, then I trust him."

Cocytus huffed his breath again at his Lady's generous reply. He didn't deserve the compliment.

"I-I s-see. C-Cocytus is a W-Warrior of Nazarick afterall."

"That's right, Mare!" Tiamat patted his head once again, "Good job."

Mare sheepishly smiled at the simple praise.

"Now, with that said," the Dragoness stood up, "I need to go now, Cocytus has waited long enough, don't you agree?"

Aura and Mare nodded, and stood up as well.

"The preparations are complete, Cocytus?"

"Yes. Ainz-sama. Has. Dispatched. A. Small. Army. At. My. Command. To. Help. With. The. Construction. They. Are. Currently. Waiting. To. Be. Dispatched. Moreover. We. Also. Have. The. Blueprint. Of. The. Fish. Farm. In. Hand."

"Ah, the superior fish farms that Demiurge built was it?" she asked.

"Indeed."

"Alright," Tiamat waved Aura and Mare goodbye. "See you later~!"

"Bye-bye Lady Tiamat!" Aura gave her a big wave.

"And g-good l-luck, Cocytus!" Mare said, waving as well.

The Dragoness walked towards Cocytus, "Shall we?"

The Ruler of Icy Glacier bowed, following behind her.

They walked down from the VIP Arena, and towards the dark corridor. Since Cocytus was not equipped with the 『Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown』, Tiamat had to ask Aureole Omega to open up a portal outside the Arena.

Tiamat waved one last time to the twins with a smile and kissed the baby dragons goodbye as they entered the corridor.

"Lady. Tiamat." Cocytus said once the twins and her dragons couldn't see them anymore.

Tiamat looked back at Cocytus who was walking behind her. With his tall figure, he blocked out the sun, making the corridor a lot darker than it usually was.

"What is it, Cocytus?"

"Do. You. Spend. Your. Lunch. With. Aura. And. Mare. All. The. Time?"

"Hm, not all the time. Sometimes Aura is busy with the Construction inside the Forest of Tob...Oh! Isn't that within your jurisdiction as well?"

Cocytus nodded.

"I also have lunch with whoever is available, like Albedo, and Pandora's Actor."

Cocytus huffed again, "Pandora's. Actor?" he asked.

"Yes! I know you guys don't see each other very often, but he's truly a great child. I can see why Ainz would be proud of him."

Cocytus opened and closed his mandibles, the words stuck in his throat.

"Do you want to ask something?" Tiamat observed.

Cocytus had been...skittish the entire time. His mandibles clacked irregularly, and his eyes didn't blink at the same time. It was as if he was preventing himself from doing something or saying something to her.

"I. I…"

"Are you somehow afraid that I'll get mad?" Tiamat asked.

Seeing as there was no response from Cocytus, Tiamat could only assume that what she said was the truth,

"It's alright, you can ask me anything Cocytus," she reassured him, patting one of his arms like a mother would their child. "What do you want to tell me?"

Tiamat waited, and after a while, Cocytus's mandibles opened.

"Do. You. Think. Ainz-Sama. Is. Disappointed. With. Me. My. Lady?"

"What do you mean?" she tilted her head.

"I. Was. The. One. Who. Wished. To. Save. The. Lizardmen. Yet. I. Relied. On. Demiurge. To. Persuade. You." Cocytus admitted shamefully.

If Demiurge had not helped persuade Lady Tiamat and Ainz-sama, then he would have no opportunity of redeeming himself as a Floor Guardian of Ainz Ooal Gown.

Considering how angry Ainz-sama was at Albedo's blunder, he had hoped that it wouldn't happen to him as well.

"That's it?"

"Excuse. Me?" Cocytus was surprised to hear that Dragoness reply so casually, so surprised that the disrespectful words had escaped his mouth before he could notice.

He had expected her to scold him or something similar. But she answered him nonchalantly, in the same way she treated the twins.

Like a mother to a child.

"Is that it?" Tiamat asked once again, her amethyst eyes gleaming with curiosity.

"...Yes?" Cocytus answered unsurely.

"You're scared that I'll get angry at _that_?"

"Yes." this time he answered truthfully.

Contrary to what he expected, Lady Tiamat cracked up loud enough that the baby dragons looked at the entrance of the corridor, wondering what was so funny.

Tiamat laughed, "You-you actually think," _heave_, "I'd get mad at something like that. _Gosh_."

"M. My. Lady?"

"I never expected that you'd be so adorable."

"I. Am. Afraid. I. Don't. Understand."

"Cocytus," Tiamat slowly explained. "You see, we wanted to merge the Lizardmen into Nazarick as well. The fact that you brought that fact up makes us _happy_, and even if you didn't make that suggestion, we would still have brought them to Nazarick. So you don't have to worry about anything."

Cocytus was awestruck.

He didn't realize that the Supreme Beings had thought so far ahead.

His head spun as he wondered about how wise their two gods must be to come up with such an intricate plan.

'_Sasuga.'_

"Is that all?" Tiamat asked with a warm smile.

Cocytus lamely nodded, still astonished.

Tiamat extended her hand for Cocytus to take, "Shall we go then?"

Cocytus took her warm hand in his icy claws, and she led them through the portal.

(o´・ω・｀)ﾉ

"These are all the skeletons Ainz gave us?" she asked

Before her was a mass of around a few hundred skeletons.

Tiamat whistled.

'_He's been really busy…'_

"Yes." Cocytus dutifully replied.

"Dang, he's going all out, huh?" Tiamat muttered. "In that case, we have to do our best too, Cocytus."

"Yes! My. Lady."

"Alright," Tiamat clapped her hands together. "Skeletons! Walk to the Lizardmen village!"

The skeleton horde suddenly jolted as they began to stiffly walk in the direction of the village.

Tiamat turned back around to gently gaze at Cocytus.

"Cocytus, I know you're worried about Ainz and I abandoning all of you. But I want you to remember this; there is nothing, _nothing _you can do to make us stop loving all of you," she took a step forward, "So don't worry about that, okay?"

Cocytus quietly nodded. If he could cry, he would have.

He had never felt luckier to serve the two Supreme Beings, the greatest among all existences, and he would do anything to be by their side.

"Well, let's get going then. We have a _loooot _of work to do."

(o´・ω・｀)ﾉ

Tiamat, Cocytus and their skeletons finally passed through the swamp.

Through her keen eyes, she could see the Lizardmen cleaning the mud away from their area of the lake. One of them caught a hint of her scent, and immediately looked up to see her, and happily waved.

But their smiles quickly turned sour when they saw the army she brought with her, along with the blue monster that seemed to command the army.

They immediately know who he was.

Tiamat could see the warriors rushing to get into formation; even Zaryusu came out with his trusty Frost Pain in hand.

Signalling for Cocytus to stop, she flew ahead to the Lizardmen village.

"Goddess-sama!" Crusch yelled out. "What are _they _doing here?" she asked, fear etched on every word she said.

The mothers ushered their children inside as they started to cry, reminded of what had happened just a week ago. The rest of the warriors formed a line, preparing to defend themselves from what was about to come.

"Please calm dow—"

"They shouldn't be here!" another one screamed out.

"Children, plea—"

"Do they want to kill us again? After they promised to leave us alone?!"

"Goddess-sama!"

"Goddess-sama, help us!"

"Dragon Goddess-sa—"

"**QUIET!**"

Tiamat roared loudly. Her voice reverberated throughout the new Lizardmen village, silencing the whole swamp in an instant.

"Listen," she said softly. "They are here to help."

"B-But they're the Ruler of Death's army!"

"Look closer," Tiamat pointed to the army behind her. "They have brought no weapons, nor armors."

The skeletons walked forward bearing various tools: from shovels to picks to more obscure items like a gray cauldron.

The Lizardmen just intently stared at them.

Cocytus, who noticed their stares, bowed politely.

"If you can't differentiate between the evil and those that bear no harm, then you are no warrior."

The Lizardmen were stunned into silence at their Goddess's wisdom.

"Now, _please behave_," she asked with a strained smile. "They are here to help," she called out to the Blue Warrior.

Cocytus commanded the army to remain where they were and walked towards their Goddess.

"This is Cocytus, the one the Ruler of Death has assigned to watch over our progress," Tiamat introduced him to them.

The Lizardmen were still skeptical.

"In fact, Cocytus comes with a gift, isn't that right Cocytus?" Tiamat winked at him.

Getting what the Dragoness was trying to imply, the Lord of Glaciers quickly answered. "Indeed. My. Master. Had. Asked. Me. To. Give. This. To. You."

He ordered one of the many skeletons with a wheelbarrow to move forward, and once the skeletal soldier pulled away the tarp, they saw mountains of fish laying there, ready to be eaten.

The Lizardmen rejoiced. Finally, starvation would slay them no more.

Even Crusch smiled happily at the prospect of food source, even if it's just for today.

"How do we know that these aren't poisoned?" Zaryusu asked, wary of the gifts from someone who tried to kill them just a few days ago.

"These. Are. The. Gifts. Given. By. My. Master." Cocytus said emotionally. "For. You. To. Say. That. He. Wanted. To. Kill. You. In. Such. An. Underhanded. Way. Is. Insulting." his mandibles clacked aggressively.

The tension between the two was so high that the slightest touch would have been enough for them to go to war.

"Your Master tried to kill us just last week," Zenberu chimed in. "It makes sense if we question what the Undead himself has given us."

"How. Disrespectful."

"We don't need you here, we only need our Goddess!" one of them chimed in, followed with a 'That's right!' in reply.

In the end, the place was filled with angry and panicked shouts once again.

Tiamat sighed, she was never good at dealing with conflict.

'_What to do…_' she covered her face with her hands.

If she let this be, the Lizardmen would reject any future help that they desperately needed to improve the village. The river's fish supply would not be enough, especially since the Lizardmen tribes had all united.

But if she supported Cocytus, then the Lizardmen will grow distrustful of her, making her and Ainz's previous plans all for naught.

There was only one possible solution.

"Then," she began. She deliberately raised the tone of her voice so it could be heard by both parties involved.

Their attention instantly turned to her. Their gazes burned into her skin, as usual. Afterall, Tiamat was never used to being the center of attention. But this was something she absolutely had to do to ensure the success of their plan.

"Cocytus and I will eat with you too."

A simple enough solution.

If Cocytus refused, then there was a reason for the Lizardmen to distrust the Undead's _gifts_. But if he agreed, the Lizardmen might give him a chance.

"Alright," Shasuryu who was quiet through all the debate finally spoke up.

"Ani-ja!" Zaryusu protested.

"I see no reason why we shouldn't accept Goddess-sama's proposal. In the end, she did promise to take us under her wings."

Tiamat smiled. Thankfully, there was at least one person who could think logically.

"You'll eat with us, right Cocytus?" Tiamat asked.

Cocytus nodded. "Yes."

"Then it's settled. You can choose which piece for us to eat. Considering how good your sense of smell is, I believe you can spot which one could potentially be poisonous, right?"

Shasuryu nodded, and immediately ordered the representatives of each tribe to choose which fish should be given to both Tiamat and Cocytus.

"I've never eaten fish like this before, so this will be my first time to eat it in Lizardmen style of cooking. I wonder how you're going to present it!"

"You see Goddess-sama, we—"

The platter in front of her was the most horrible thing she had ever seen since coming to Nazarick. Even the inn at E-Rantel didn't serve any kind of quality.

The plate was made out of a pile of some sort of leaf that acts as a plate, where the blood and juices from the fish mixed together as the fluids leaked out of the loosely strewn leaves.

The fish had been boiled whole, without removing their scales. Tiamat could even catch the strong scent of viscera coming from the fish's gaping mouth; a putrid smell that caused her to cover pinch her nose close with her fingers, covered by her long red sleeves.

The fish's eyes stared at her in disdain, and its mouth opened up as if to curse her.

She could even hear it say to her in resignation.

'_Why are we still here, just to suffer…'_

The other one was cooked over a fire. It was black enough that she almost thought it was charcoal.

The two dishes didn't look appetising.

"I-Is this the way you usually eat your fish?" she asked as she sat together with the Lizardmen on the floor as Cocytus sat next to her.

"Yes. The second one is usually cooked for special occasions, but the first one is a staple across all the Lizardmen Tribes. We usually eat it raw, but considering this is your first time eating fish, we gave you a child's palate instead."

"A-Ah…" Tiamat forced a strained smile. "T-Thank you for being so generous Shasuryu."

Shasuryu nodded and left, sitting down beside his brother.

"Shall. We. Lady. Tiamat?" Cocytus asked, knowing that she was hesitant to eat the dish in front of her.

"O-O-Of course, Cocytus," she said with false cheer, her smile not quite reaching her eyes.

"You. Can. Skip. Out. If. You. Want. My. Lady."

Tiamat looked at him as if he was crazy.

She eyed the Lizardmen warily, especially Crusch and Zaryusu who looked excitedly as their Goddess was about to try their cuisine. Their tails thumped against the ground, and their eyes looked at her expectantly.

'_Theyaskyouhowyouareandyouhavetosaythatyou'refinebutyour'renotfineandyoucan'tgetintoitbecausetheywouldneverunderstand.'_

"Is there something wrong, Goddess-sama?" Shasuryu asked.

"Hm? N-Nothing," she raised her fingers, ready to pluck the fish in front of her with her hands. "I-Itadakimasu!"

She stabbed the fish's flesh with her fingers, and plucked a small portion. It smelled like the sea port from her first Mythril quest.

Tiamat slowly put the whole piece in her mouth. Slowly, she bit into one of the scales and tried to spit it out, but the Lizardmen and Cocytus were eagerly watching her. Especially the children.

Tiamat shook her head, regaining her bearings. If she were to spit out some of the scales then the children would follow her example, which could develop into a bad habit. She needed to finish what has been given to her.

Mustering all her willpower, she finally swallowed the entire piece of fish, her throat straining as she did so.

"I-It's delicious," she said with a forced smile.

Cocytus watched from the sidelines as Lady Tiamat was _actually _struggling to eat what had been presented in front of her.

Her poised form trembled in fear, and although her smile eased the Lizardmen, he knew better.

He saw her trembling hands reaching out for the boiled fish laid on some sort of a leaf-like plate on the ground caked with mud.

Truly, this place was not worthy of the Supreme Beings.

But Lady Tiamat still complied with what they asked. If they asked her to sit down, no matter how dirty it was, she sat down. When the baby Lizardmen touched the strands of her hair out of curiosity, she let them do so with a warm smile.

So why was it so hard for her to actually eat the fish that had been served?

Cocytus had heard the rumors that Lady Tiamat was a glutton. Aside from cooking for the denizens of Nazarick, she also ate with them almost everyday despite not needing sustenance.

The Floor Guardians was fine with eating just once a day, but Lady Tiamat made it her mission to make them eat at least three times a day.

Seeing her strained expression as she choked down the fish, Cocytus decided to help.

Afterall, it was him who needed to prove himself in front of the Lizardmen, not Lady Tiamat.

He put his serving into his mouth, as well as Lady Tiamat's portion.

It was not bad, although the taste of the fish was quite strong. He agreed that what Lady Tiamat had cooked was a thousand times better than the fish he had just eaten.

"C-Cocytus, you don't have to finish my portion," she said in hushed whispers.

"It's. Alright. My. Lady. I. Was. Feeling. A. Little. Bit. Hungry." Cocytus said as he tried to comfort his Supreme Being.

Tiamat smiled, as if she knew of his intention, and whispered. "Thank you," to which Cocytus received with a nod.

"It. Is. Indeed. Delicious." Cocytus said with ease.

The Lizardmen watched as the blue monster ate his portion and their Goddess's portion. Either the monster had poison immunity up his sleeves, or he was actually telling the truth.

They had decided that the person called Cocytus was telling them the truth.

Afterall, there's no way the Goddess would do something to harm them.

After some deliberation from the Elders, they decided that the fish given by the Undead was safe to eat, and the Lizardmen rejoiced.

They immediately flocked over to one of the wheelbarrows once they knew that the fish was safe for consumption. It was so hectic that Shasuryu had to force them into multiple lines.

After warily asking Cocytus about the amount of fish that was available, he began evenly distributing them to each family, each receiving the gift gratefully.

Once they made sure that each family had received their share, Zaryusu looked at Cocytus cautiously.

"Did he come here just to bring fish?" Zaryusu curiously asked his Goddess.

Tiamat smiled at him, "You see, he came here because he has a proposition for you, all of you," she stressed the last part.

Zaryusu and Shasuryu listened intently.

Cocytus looked back at Lady Tiamat as if he was unsure, but her tender smile and warm eyes reassured him that everything was going to be alright.

"I. Think. We. Need. A. More. Private. Location." Cocytus said, feeling the Lizardmen's eyes behind him staring at his back while they ate.

Zaryusu looked at his brother for confirmation, and once his brother nodded, he immediately relayed this message back to the both of them.

"I understand. Then, please follow me," he gestured for the tribe leaders to follow.

Zaryusu lead them to the outskirts of the village, near the old cave where he had first discovered his trusty hydra companion Rororo.

"Before we begin," the elderly looking Lizardmen said to Tiamat, "I would like to convey our sincerest gratitude for providing us with food, Goddess-sama."

"Think nothing of it," she swiftly replied. "To be fair, the Ruler of Death was the one who prepared your meal for today. Not me. So it's him you should thank," Tiamat referred to Cocytus.

The elderly one looked shocked, as if in disbelief that the enemy that had desired to kill them only yesterday was now eagerly providing for them. But he wouldn't stain the name of the Lizardmen just because of past grudges.

"Please tell your Master that he has our sincerest gratitude." he bowed.

"I. Will."

Tiamat happily clapped, "Now that's out of the way, as you might know, this person is Cocytus. In fact, he is the one who appealed to the Ruler of Death to save the Lizardmen."

"You. Flatter. Me. Too. Much."

"He's also here to watch our progress for the next six months. As you might remember, he was assigned to watch over this village. Cocytus is an honorable warrior, to use underhanded tactics is beneath him, so you can rest assured," Tiamat tried to ease the Lizardmen leaders.

Judging from their expressions, it seemed that they decided to trust Cocytus for now.

Their postures relaxed and their eyes lit up a bit at her mention that the Blue Insect was a warrior like them. Zenberu especially shifted around in excitement, eager for the chance to prove his strength against a fellow warrior.

Tiamat smiled, as long as there was room for their relationship to grow, even if it was petty rivalry, then everything was fine.

"So, aside from watching us, what is he doing here with that army?" Zaryusu asked.

"They. Are. Not. An. Army. In. Fact. I. Am. Here. To. Help. You. Solve. Your. Food. Crisis." Cocytus handed them a parchment filled with the plans he had made with Demiurge, "Please. Give. This. A. Look. So. That. You'll. Understand."

Zaryusu accepted the parchment warily from Cocytus's arms, and proceeded to read it together with Shasuryu.

Within a few seconds of looking over it, he gasped in surprise.

"T-This is…"

Tiamat smiled. Inscribed on the parchment was a blueprint for one of the fish farms. Although it would obviously not be enough to sustain the entire combined tribe, Ainz had told her to give them a peek of what they were planning.

'_The carrot and the stick, huh?' _she recalled what Ainz had told her. If the Lizardmen were smart, they would definitely accept the plan, especially since it held no disadvantages for them.

Tiamat and Ainz considered the possibility that the Lizardmen would just steal the Blueprint and make the farm by themselves, but that was impossible. For the plan to work, they needed『Dagda's Cauldron』which was in Cocytus's possession at the moment.

The leaders had no choice but to accept.

"For now, we will leave you alone to decide whether you'll accept Cocytus's help, but remember that we only have six months. Please come to a decision quickly," she stressed. "I'll return tomorrow to hear what you have decided."

And with that she turned around and left, Cocytus following behind her.

"T-Tomorrow? Goddess-sama, that's too soon!" the elder panicked, trying to appeal for more time. They still needed to discuss whether this Cocytus person was safe to be around. Moreover the Goddess had also requested that all the tribes must be present in one location, which would make things harder.

"As I said," she turned back to face them, "We don't have much time. I need your decision by tomorrow. If not, it'll be harder for me to protect you."

They quieted down at the implication behind her words.

"Now, please think things through," she said in a softer tone. "Oh! And by the way, for this plan to work, I need the Lizardmen to combine their tribes into one."

Their eyes boggled.

Years of civil wars and disputes made the Goddess's demand sound ridiculous in their ears.

"That's impossible, Goddess-sama!" Zaryusu protested, "After all, they have their own territory and family to feed."

"It is possible," she simply said, pointing at Zaryusu. "Wasn't it you who managed to unify them in the face of peril? What makes this problem different than the previous one?"

The Goddess stretched her arms out, "When faced with the God of Death himself, you all stood as one. Now, another crisis is at your feet, one that will kill you slowly but surely," she put her arms down as she closed her eyes.

"Will you join arms once more?"

They could not bring themselves to refute their Goddess.

Tiamat saw it: the worry in their faces. The elders especially looked like she had asked her to do the impossible.

Perhaps it was because they had seen so many civil wars between the Lizardmen that they had become unacclimatized with the idea of peace.

"Here's a piece of advice, think not only for yourselves, but for the people around you as well. You're all Lizardmen aren't you? Just because you have different strengths and scales, it doesn't change the fact that you're all inherently the same," Tiamat said.

With that she flew back to where the army of death silently stood as Cocytus gave the elders one last look before turning back to follow her trail.

That night, the Lizardmen held the biggest meeting they had ever had since the Great War. A meeting where all Lizardmen spoke freely and without restraint. Opinions were thrown as much as wine was drunk.

Every Lizardmen Tribe leader said their piece.

Every one of them.

At first they began telling their part of the story, why they had fought each other, and why they were had no choice but to fight, and the reason for that could be boiled down to one cause.

_Desperation_.

After their war with the Toadmen, the scarcity of food forced them to turn on each other, desperate to feed their tribe, their family.

In the end, they agreed that their Goddess was right. With food now being provided for them as well as the plan that they had just seen, there was no need for them to fight anymore. Afterall, the solution the Goddess had offered them was the solution they should have thought about _together_ instead of _against each other_.

It was a solution to settle their food insecurity.

A simple enough problem that they should have thought about long before they were divided, but they were blinded by fury, grief, and greed.

When morning came around, they finally came to a decision.

To make a new future under their Goddess, to mark a new chapter in their lives.

A new tribe was formed.

_Golden Flame Tribe_.

The chosen warriors of the Goddess of Dragons, until the very end.

(o´・ω・｀)ﾉ

Cocytus was worried.

Extremely worried.

As they walked back to Nazarick, Lady Tiamat's complexion grew paler and paler. Eventually, she asked the army to go on ahead, lingering behind as Cocytus worriedly stood beside her.

"Is. There. Something. Wrong. Lady. Tiamat?"

"Hm? N-Nothing, so p-please go on ahead without," _burp_, her face immediately burned in embarassment "...me."

"Are. You. Sick. My. Lady?"

"Nonononono, I'm not sick, I'm fine! Let's just go back to Nazarick, ha ha ha!" her smile not quite reaching her eyes.

Still skeptical, Cocytus complied, and once they arrived at Nazarick, Tiamat excused herself, saying that he did a good job and that they'll revisit the Lizardmen village tomorrow.

Even before Cocytus could respond, she teleported away.

As he went through the rest of his day, Cocytus's worry for his Lady mounted, and he decided to look for her before the day was over.

He went to the Sixth Floor, but she wasn't there. When he asked the twins, they said she didn't visit that day.

He knocked on Ainz-sama's office, only for Albedo to open the door. When he inquired about the Supreme Being's whereabouts, she shook her head saying that she wasn't here either.

Cocytus walked towards the kitchen, surprising the Homunculi maids who were having their lunch, and asked Sous-Chef about Lady Tiamat, who also shook his head, saying that Lady Tiamat didn't come to the kitchen as well, which was out of the norm.

Where could she be?

There was only one option left.

Her room on the Ninth Floor.

He knocked on the grandiose double doors, and Yuri came out.

"Cocytus-sama, is there anything I can do for you?"

He huffed his breath. "I. Am. Looking. For. Lady. Tiamat."

Yuri raised her glasses, composed as ever. "I believe Lady Tiamat is indisposed for today."

"Did. Something. Happen?"

Yuri looked back inside the room, and Cocytus could hear the faint sound of Lady Tiamat saying something to Yuri. It seemed that she was there.

"Please wait a moment, Cocytus-sama."

Cocytus waited outside the room, and after a few minutes Yuri finally exited the room.

"Lady Tiamat is ill."

"Ill!" Cocytus huffed in surprise.

"Yes. I contacted Albedo-sama just now to look over Lady Tiamat's stats, it seems that she has a debuff called『Nausea』, but thankfully it will be gone in three days time," Yuri explained.

"How. Is. That. Possible?"

Among all of the Supreme Beings of Nazarick, Lady Tiamat had one of the highest defense and resist stats. There was only one possible way that she could have received the debuff.

"Was. She. Attacked?"

"I don't think so. I accompanied Lady Tiamat all day yesterday after Lady Tiamat and Cocytus-sama had returned to Nazarick. It may be presumptuous for me to say this, but did something happen during Cocytus-sama's outings with Lady Tiamat?"

Yuri bowed, knowing that her question might be disrespectful towards a Floor Guardian of Nazarick. But she had to know. She was Yuri Alpha, the oldest of the Pleiades maids, and Lady Tiamat had been assigned under her watch.

"No. One. Attacked. Us. Yesterday."

"I see," Yuri's glasses glinted, as if she knew the truth. "Perhaps it might be just a Dragon thing, Cocytus-sama."

"Perhaps."

"Is there anything else I can help you with, Cocytus-sama?"

"There. Is. No. Need." his mandibles clicked as he was thinking.

Cocytus began formulating a plan since tomorrow was the appointed day where the Lizardmen were supposed to reject or accept his proposal. Perhaps Ainz-sama would allow Pandora's Actor to act once again in Lady Tiamat's stead.

"Thank. You."

"It is my greatest honor, Cocytus-sama," Yuri bowed.

Once Yuri returned, she immediately saw that Ainz-sama was already sitting on the chair next to Lady Tiamat's bed.

Yuri hastily bowed, since she didn't expect Ainz-sama to be there.

From where she stood, she could hear Ainz-sama and Lady Tiamat talking with one another.

"I heard from Albedo," Ainz sighed. From his tone, it was clear that he was worried, "What happened?"

His friend was not her usual self. She should be boisterous and loud, but instead she looked as pale as the sheets beneath her. Her breathing was ragged and heavy. She covered her eyes with the palm of her hand, and even Ainz could see the cold sweat on her arms.

"Ughhhhh. Stahp. No talk. Puke…" Lady Tiamat groaned.

"Should we get Pestonya to heal you?"

Tiamat lamely nodded.

"What happened?"

"No more…"

"No more what?"

"No more _fish_…"

Ainz shut his jaw, having absolutely no idea what she was talking about.

Thankfully, the debuff could easily be erased using Tiamat's 『Full Cure』, but she was in a state where she couldn't even cast a simple spell.

In the end, Pestonya was called to clear that debuff of hers.

Afterwards, every time Tiamat went to the Lizardmen village, she blocked her nose and brought her hand fan with her.

Whenever she smelled fish, she had an uncontrollable reflex of wanting to puke, something that she had never felt with food before. Ever.

Through the countless years to come, she would always unconsciously hiss whenever she saw fish.

A few days later, she found out that she had gained a permanent debuff called, 『Ichthyophobia』. She was so dumbstruck that she stared at her status screen for more than an hour.

* * *

**Omake: Cage**

* * *

"It just doesn't make sense."

Ainz looked at the Dragoness who was sitting next to him in his office and tilted his head.

"I mean, you refused my suggestion to go to the Lizardmen village alone, but you're fine with leaving me after Pandora's Actor had finished _persuading_ the Lizardmen. If you're really worried that I'll get brainwashed like Shalltear, then shouldn't I just stay in Nazarick?"

Ainz continued staring at her.

True. The plan he made didn't make sense.

After Pandora's Actor had returned from persuading the Lizardman, she would be left alone and vulnerable, waiting for him and his army to march to the middle of the lake.

His initial thought was to protect her, most of all, because one: she was his dearest friend who stayed with him, and two, if she were to get brainwashed, she would be extremely bothersome to defeat.

It was also true that to prevent either situation from happening, he could just make her stay inside Nazarick.

If he could have, he would lock her up, making sure that she was safe first and foremost. Just like a bird in a cage.

More like a Dragon in a cage.

He could provide for her; with Lupusregina Beta's relationship with Carne Village, as well as placing Solution and Sebas in the Kingdom, their food supply would effectively never run out.

If she wanted to bake, then he could easily provide the necessary ingredients. She wasn't one to be fussy after all. She never really demanded anything from him.

The only problem he would really have would be his limited finances, seeing that most of the things in Nazarick were run using her Adventuring money.

But he could manage. He could always do more Adamantite quests.

Yet he wouldn't do that.

He couldn't.

He feared that she would hate him.

And he would hate that.

"You need to learn how to interact with other people better," he said, hiding his true intentions.

But he knew that was also a lie.

"_Wait_, are you saying that my first impressions suck?"

He scoffed, and smiled internally as a sense of nostalgia washed over him.

"Don't you remember your first impression on _us?_"

"Sshh-shush! Don't say it!"

"You invited us to your cafe, only to embarrass yourself by—"

In a swift but precise movement, Tiamat had covered his jaw with the palm of her hand.

"Suzuki-san," she said in a low voice. A dangerous and hostile aura surrounded her, "Didn't I tell you that a proper gentleman wouldn't take advantage of a woman's vulnerability?"

A sense of fear washed over him at those words; he remembered it, that _coffee_.

After that, he remembered _Hannah_ had given him a lecture on how to act as a proper gentleman.

But soon his fears were washed away by the ever-present green aura.

He slowly nodded.

"Good," Tiamat replaced her frown with a smile, the hostility gone in an instant. "Let's not embarrass ourselves again, _okay_?"

He nodded once again, and Tiamat finally let go of his jaw.

Both sighed in relief.

Ainz needed to remind himself that sometimes the person in front of him was not to be underestimated.

* * *

**Omake: Meanwhile**

* * *

The maids watched as the Guardian of the First, Second, and Third Floors stood in front of the door that led to the Throne Room.

Their soft whispers were similar to a buzzing bee, loud and annoying.

Shalltear gritted her teeth.

In her hand, she had brought a box that she was unfamiliar with.

A tool box.

The Vampire looked once again at the massive door and gulped, her throat feeling parched even though she had just drank freshly obtained human blood a few hours ago.

She did it out of curiosity, despite not needing any sustenance. The man was dying anyway, and she had never tasted human blood before.

It wouldn't be something she would try for a second time, that was for sure. She had already shamed Nazarick once because of it.

Shalltear turned her attention back towards the task at hand.

The door was intricate, yet simplistic in its design, giving it a much more elegant feel. The light-consuming obsidian door stood in stark contrast with the brilliant gold filigree decorating it.

Even if the door appeared to be simple, if someone looked close enough, they would notice that the gold markings were actually streams of melted gold that ran through all the doors, making the monoliths much more intricate than at first glance.

As expected of the Supreme Beings who designed the holiest of holies.

Such great taste.

Much wow.

However, there was just one imperfection upon the beautiful, elegant, painstakingly-crafted door.

And that was the slight tilt on the right side of the door, making it look asymmetrical.

The door itself didn't sustain any damage, but the hinges however, needed to be repaired.

Shalltear sighed. A vampire of her status being reduced to a repairman was a blow to her massive pride.

Even though she knew it was entirely her fault.

The maids began to whisper once more.

Irritation quickly built up as tick marks started to appear on Shalltear's forehead.

"**SCRAM!"**

The maids, shocked by the sudden shout, immediately dispersed.

Shalltear sighed once again.

Now that the maids were out of the way, how was she supposed to fix this anyways?

Should she take out the whole door?

Create a new door?

Shalltear shook her head.

No, there was no way she was capable of designing something even greater than what the Supreme Beings had designed previously, let alone replicate the intricate design of the throne door.

"What are you doing, Shalltear?"

A familiar voice came from behind Shalltear. A voice that belonged to one particularly annoying horned woman who thought too much of herself.

Shalltear turned around with a mocking grin, "Why? Are you curious, you wide-mouthed gorilla?"

"Ha? What did you say, you lamprey?!" Albedo roared back, her golden eyes glinting with fury.

"Ara~ I was created to look this way by the Supreme Beings."

"That's the same for me, you know?!"

Shalltear paused. What Albedo had said was irrefutable, and to reject it would be to profane the name of the Supreme Beings.

"True, but they obviously created you to serve as the ugliest of us all," the smol vampire jeered.

Albedo snarled and opened her mouth to spit out a withering retort before an odd look flashed over her face.

"What? So I'm right?" Shalltear pushed forward, a little confused as to why the Succubus didn't rise to her insult.

"Forget it, I didn't come here to argue with you. More importantly, what are you doing to the door?"

Shalltear scrunched her face into a scowl, "Ainz-sama told me my punishment is to fix this door I broke. But how am I supposed to fix something that the Supreme Beings designed themselves?"

Silence filled the air for a moment before Albedo suddenly burst out into laughter.

"a...a-AHAHAHA!"

"W-What's so funny, you virgin?!" Shalltear screeched, flustered.

Albedo finally stopped laughing to look Shalltear in the eye, a snicker still evident on her face.

"You—" _wheeze _"Y-You actually thought Ainz-sama ordered you to repair the d-door?" her body began convulsing in laughter once more.

"O-Of course! What else could he have ordered?!"

"Whew, I haven't laughed this hard since…" Albedo seemingly ignored her, placing a finger on her chin as she contemplated, "Since yesterday actually, when Lady Tiamat got slapped by a fish…"

Shalltear grinded her teeth as her eye twitched. This idiotic gorilla had the nerve to ignore her and blabber about Lady Tiamat getting slapped by a fish?

"Hurry up and tell me what you mean!" the Vampire jumped onto Albedo's face and began pulling the Succubus's silky black hair.

"A-AH! Get off and I'll tell you!" Albedo yelled as she struggled to pull the screeching lolita off her face.

Shalltear jumped off with a smug grin on her face as she waited for Albedo's answer.

The Overseer took a deep breath in. Usually, she would pummel the lamprey into oblivion for acting like such a savage.

However, a certain someone important to her would be disappointed if she did that.

"Ainz-sama never ordered you to repair the door."

"What?!"

Albedo resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "A portion of your salary was taken to cover the repairs for the door. Ainz-sama never asked you to repair it yourself, idio—" the Overseer cleared her throat, "Shalltear."

"N-No way…" Shalltear let go of her hold of the toolbox as it fell dramatically onto the marble floor with a loud clatter.

'_In that case, you will pay for the reparation of the damages on the Throne Room's door.' _She suddenly recalled what Ainz-sama had said.

"T-Then why did Lady Tiamat ask to help me?"

"Of course, to help you pay off your debt. Lady Tiamat had asked me to save a certain amount of money for emergencies. I'm guessing that she would help you by giving part of that to help repair the door."

Shalltear's face burst out into a furious crimson.

Not only did she misinterpret Ainz-sama's instructions, Lady Tiamat, the person she hurt the most in the whole situation, was helping her bear her punishment.

Faced with complete and utter humiliation, Shalltear Bloodfallen could only do one thing.

"O-Of course, I knew that all along! I was just here to look at the damage, _hmph!_" Shalltear quickly turned around and loudly stomped away.

Staring at the rapidly fading back of the Vampire, Albedo shook her head with an amused smile.

"Idiot."

* * *

**SPECIAL EDITION**

**Halloween Omake**

_**No one is above the rule of Trick or Treat**_**!**

* * *

The twins and Tiamat were sitting on the ground of the VIP Arena, but this time, a big burly blue insect had joined them in one of their favorite pastimes.

Tiamat, as usual, was sitting in between the twins: Aura wrapped around her right arm and Mare around her left. One of the baby dragons was laying his head on her lap as he slept to the soft lull of her words and the comforting feel of her hands running across his scales.

However, today was a little bit different from their normal lunch breaks. Today, she decided to tell them of the tales she had heard back on Earth.

"Every night at ten o'clock, on an apartment veranda, a woman wearing a white ballet costume dances gracefully."

"W-What's an a-apartment?" Mare asked, tilting his head in curiosity. He had never heard the word before.

"Veranda, what's that?" Aura continued her brother's question.

"Ballet. Costume," Cocytus huffed, "What. Is. That. Item? Armor?"

Tiamat looked at their expectant faces, waiting for her to answer their question in detail.

"A-Anyways!" she sweatdropped as she decided to move on, "That's why one man kept watching her, night after night."

"O-Oh, I know what B-Ballet is!" Mare excitedly interjected.

"Amazing Mare! What is it, please tell me."

"I-It's a form of dance, Onee-san. They s-stand on their tiptoes and dance with certain gestures."

"Correct, Mare!" Tiamat praised him as she patted his blond tuft.

Mare just smiled sheepishly at the compliment.

"How. Shameful!" Cocytus clacked his mandibles. "Staring. At. A. Lady. Like. A. Knave. Is. Unbecoming. Of. A. Warrior!"

Tiamat giggled, "It's just a story Cocytus! Now, where was I…" Tiamat looked up with a thoughtful expression.

"Ah! Even if it rained, she kept dancing. After months of watching her dance, he wanted to see her up close. So he bought a good camera and zoomed in on her one night."

"Shameful!" the insectoid huffed.

"Camera? What's that?"

"I-I think it's some sort of automatic r-recording device, but I'm not sure."

"Mare, you're so smart! All that reading is paying off, great job!" Tiamat praised him once again.

Mare was beaming so brightly that Tiamat had to squint for a bit.

"Moving on. He realized that she wasn't actually dancing, she was just hung up there by her neck, swinging around for months."

"Woah, that guy is as disgusting as Shalltear," Aura stuck her tongue out in disgust.

"O-Onee-san!"

Tiamat blinked at them and pouted, "Aww, are you guys not scared?"

Cocytus huffed, banging on the floor with his fists, "There. Is. No. Glory. In. Suicide. I. Never. Thought. You. Would. Be. Scared. Of. Such. A. Degrading. Story. My Lady."

"Scared? Why is this scary?" Aura asked, tilting her head.

"Well, when I first heard this story, I was really scared," Tiamat admitted.

Cocytus' mandibles clacked gently, "Why. Did. You. Suddenly. Decide. To. Tell. Us. This. Tale. My. Lady?"

"It's almost Halloween, that's why! But I didn't know that you guys were so brave. As expected of the Floor Guardians," she complimented them with a smile.

"_H-Ha-ro-wee-nu_?" Mare asked; there was another word he hadn't heard of before. "W-What is that, My Lady?"

"It sounds delicious!" Aura commented.

"Silly Aura," Tiamat pinched Aura's nose, the dark elf wrinkling her eyebrows at the unfamiliar sensation, "Halloween isn't food, it's a celebration. It's where people dress up and ask for sweets. If they don't have sweets, then they get tricks instead!" she excitedly explained.

The Dragoness could see the glint of excitement in Aura's eyes. Her ears raised up, and she began drooling, "Sweets?!"

"Yes, sweets!" Tiamat replied with the same level of eagerness.

"W-Who do we need to ask for t-these sweets from?"

"Anyone!"

Aura gasped, "_Anyone?_"

Tiamat chuckled, "Yep! And if they don't, you can trick them."

"If. Ainz. Sama. Joined. This. _Ha-ro-wee-nu_. And. If. He. Doesn't. Give. Us. Sweets. Then. Do. We. Have. To. Trick. Him. As. Well?"

Tiamat smiled at Cocytus, "Of course! Nobody is above the rules of tricks and treats!"

Little did she know that her little statement would cause so much trouble.

* * *

Demiurge was a busy demon.

After finishing what paperwork he had in the morning, he went to manage the farm and didn't get a chance to return to Nazarick until later that evening.

As he crossed the threshold to the Great Tomb under the starry sky, he let out a sigh at the thought of all the paperwork he had left, before he furiously shook his head.

'_This is all for the sake of Nazarick.' _

However, he was pleasantly surprised when he saw Cocytus greeting him at the entrance of Nazarick.

"Demiurge," Cocytus huffed.

"Ah, Cocytus! What a pleasant surprise!" Demiurge exclaimed, "How was your day?"

"I. Went. To. The. Lizardmen. Village. In. The. Morning. And. Went. For. Lunch. With. Lady. Tiamat. As. Well. As. Aura. And. Mare." Cocytus's tail flicked happily at the memory. "I. Want. To. Ask. How. Your. Day. Has. Been. But. Assuming. From. What. You. Said. Last. Night. At. The. Bar. You. Must. Have. Been. Busy."

"You have assumed correctly Cocytus, as expected," Demiurge praised his fellow Floor Guardian.

Cocytus huffed out a long chilly breath. "I. Would. Want. You. To. Rest. However. There. Is. Something. That. I. Need. To. Discuss. With. You."

Demiurge's gemstone eyes glinted; it was rare for him to see Cocytus so distraught.

"Let's discuss this in my office," Demiurge walked forward, contacting Aureole as he did.

[Aureole-san, could you open a portal to the Seventh-Floor?]

[Very well, Demiurge-san. Please stand back a bit.]

The moment Demiurge took a step back, a purple rift opened where he once was.

The Demon walked through the portal, Cocytus trailing after him as they entered the hellish Seventh-Floor.

"Ah, we should probably hurry, Cocytus. The heat might be a bit uncomfortable for you," Demiurge lowered his head apologetically.

"Don't. Worry. About. Me. It. Would. Take. Much. More. To. Bother. Me." Cocytus huffed proudly.

"Is that so? Well, let's move on then."

The two walked in silence across the Seventh-Floor and its hellish scenery, until they finally reached the Burning Temple.

"Please, go on," Demiurge held the titanic doors to the temple open, beckoning for Cocytus to enter.

"Thank. You." Cocytus nodded as he walked in, Demiurge following as he let the door close behind him.

As the two entered the office, Demiurge fell onto the sofa with no small amount of relief, and Cocytus sat across from him—the weight of the insectoid causing the Ruler of Glaciers to sink a bit in the soft material.

"So," Demiurge pushed up his glasses, "What is it that you need to tell me, Cocytus?"

Cocytus's tail flicked, "After. I. Went. To. Lunch. With. Lady. Tiamat. She. Had. Mentioned. An. Interesting. Event. Called. _Ha-ro-wee-nu._"

"_Ha-ro-wee-nu_?"

Cocytus huffed a cold breath, "You. Do. Not. Know. What. That. Means. Demiurge?"

Demiurge shook his head, "I'm afraid not, that term is unfamiliar to me. What did Lady Tiamat say?"

And so, Cocytus told him of what had happened during lunch.

"_No one is above the law of trick or treat_?" Demiurge's eyes trailed away to the ceiling. "I'm afraid I've never heard of that rule before. Perhaps it's something related to the Supreme Beings? A rule that we do not know about."

"Is. That. So."

"This might be worth researching, Cocytus. Come, let us go to Ashurbanipal."

* * *

**A few hours later...**

He finally found it, the source of the mystery behind the event Lady Tiamat had mentioned to Cocytus.

After Cocytus had told him the full story in his office, he had rushed to the library in search of a specific book.

"I found it," Demiurge slammed the thick tome on the table, "I actually found it!"

"Found. What. Demiurge?" Cocytus asked curiously.

"I think this is something that Lord Peroroncino had left to fill the library of Ashurbanipal. This could be a great clue to the Supreme Beings' culture and way of life. Thank you for informing me of this, Cocytus," Demiurge smiled at the insectoid, and Cocytus huffed out a cold mist.

"It. Is. My. Pleasure."

Demiurge continued to flip through the book. Apparently there were rules and guidelines as to how Halloween could be conducted:

**Neat Tidbits About Halloween And Sexy Costume Ideas**

**By: Julianne Geri**

**Chapter 1: Costumes**

_It is universally accepted that a person celebrating Halloween would be in search of a decent costume. The tradition began as a religious one, but has since been converted into a fun celebration for grown-ups and kids alike._

_Costumes play an integral part in this festival, and I would even go so far as to say that this is one of the most important aspects of this event. If you are not dressing up, that means you are not ready for Halloween._

_Seeing as it's the 22nd century, I personally think that it's great that women can get out of their comfort zone a bit and express themselves in less traditional ways; for example, if they want to wear something sexy then that's their choice. However, this is not restricted to just women either. A guy could wear risque and revealing costumes as well. In fact, I even recall a guy who was wearing a thong a few years back..._

_With that being said, here are a few ideas for costumes that you could wear for Halloween!_

As Demiurge flipped through the book, he was surprised at how enlightening Lord Perorocino's possession was.

The first page was filled with a full size picture of a man wearing nothing but a green vest and fabric in the shape of a teapot covering his bottom, his hand clutching the spout that said '_Rub Me!'_.

_Rasta Imposta Genie in The Lamp._

That was the title of the costume Demiurge was currently looking at.

Demiurge moved his eyes to the next page. It looked like the book was detailing not only male costumes but also female costumes.

Next was the _Sexy Sriracha_.

A woman was modeling as what he would assume was a Sriracha, but he found nothing sexy about the picture.

Demiurge questioned himself. Perhaps this book was not about the Supreme Beings? Afterall, Ainz-sama had put a lot of fake books in the Library to hide the more important books hidden deep within. Was this perhaps one of them?

The Demon put his fingers on his chin, deep in thought while Cocytus watched his fellow Floor Guardian from the sidelines.

"Did. You. Find. Anything. Demiurge?"

"So far nothing, Cocytus. The first chapter of the book didn't give me any useful information. Perhaps I ought to read more."

And so he did.

**Chapter 4: Trick or Treat.**

_Trick or treating is a Halloween custom for children and adults in many countries. Children in costume travel from door to door, asking for treats. The treat is usually some form of candy while the trick refers to a threat, usually meant in jest, or if intentional, a promise to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given._

Demiurge smiled as he gently shut the book, "I see now."

Cocytus clicked his mandibles, waiting for Demiurge to continue.

"It seems that Lady Tiamat is asking us to partake in this event. For now I don't know how this would benefit Nazarick, but we should try our best. I suppose we could call the rest of the Floor Guardians together to explain everything to them."

"Then. I. Shall. Help. You. Gather. Them. All. In. The. Throne. Room.

* * *

The door to the Throne Room silently opened, and the Floor Guardians who were present looked back at the door behind them.

"I'm sorry I'm late," the Succubus went inside the Throne Room and gently closed the door.

"They say gorillas move really slowly, so don't feel too bad," Shalltear stuck her tongue out.

Albedo's eye twitched.

"That. Is. Alright." Cocytus huffed.

"You're here now, and that is all that matters," Demiurge added.

"So, what is so important that you have to gather all the Floor Guardians here, Demiurge?" Albedo softly asked.

Demiurge grinned, "It seems that Lady Tiamat had ordered us to partake in a very specific event called _Ha-ro-wee-nu._"

"Wait, I think I've heard of that before," Aura trailed off.

"I-It's that word that Lady Tiamat m-mentioned this afternoon, onee-san."

"Ah! That thing! We can ask for sweets, right?"

Mare nodded in confirmation.

"Sweets? What are you blabbering about, chibi?" Shalltear looked at them confusedly.

"You see, this afternoon, Lady Tiamat told Aura, Mare, and Cocytus about an event called _Halloween_," Demiurge emphasized the correct pronunciation, subtly flexing on the other Floor Guardians and correcting the pronunciation for them.

Albedo forced herself to not roll her eyes.

The rest of them had their eyes locked on him.

"Halloween is an event where you can dress up as whatever you want, without judgement, and once you do, you must ask for treats. The treats could be the sweets Lady Tiamat mentioned to you, Aura."

"Ooh!" Aura exclaimed.

"Moreover, if the Supreme Beings don't give you treats, then you are allowed to trick them."

"W-W-W-W-W-Wait! We're even allowed to trick the Supreme Beings?!" Shalltear excitedly asked.

"Yes!" Demiurge agreed, "It was Lady Tiamat who mentioned, _No one is above the law of treat or tricks_."

"Are you sure, Demiurge?" Albedo, who had been quietly listening to what Demiurge had to say, finally spoke up. "I'm sure Lady Tiamat just wanted us to rest more."

"You must understand, Albedo. This must be a test. A test for us the Floor Guardians to see whether we could understand their intentions!"

"If. That. Is. True. Then. We. Have. To. Do. Our. Best!" Cocytus huffed.

"M-Me t-too!" Mare quickly followed.

"I'd do it for sweets!" Aura raised her right hand up.

"T-T-T-T-T-T-Tricking Ainz-sama, _ahn~ my underwear_…"

Albedo huffed, "It seems that you all have come to an agreement. Very well."

Demiurge pushed his glasses up. "Then tomorrow is when we have to begin our plan!"

* * *

**Aura & Mare**

* * *

"Ainz-sama, Ainz-sama!" Aura yelled from the corridor as Mare followed behind her.

Ainz looked back at the twins, and his jaw opened wide in shock.

There they were, both dressed in dragon onesies pajamas. Aura was wearing a red dragon onesie while Mare was wearing a green one.

He couldn't deny that they looked absolutely..._adorable_.

A green aura washed over him.

"What is it Aura, Mare?" he asked, slightly tilting his head downwards to look at them.

"Sweets please!"

"M-Me too!"

"Sweets? I don't have any," his red orbs stared at their confused faces.

They looked at one another before nodding.

"I-I'm sorry, A-Ainz-sama!"

"Apologies Ainz-sama!" Aura blurted out, overlapping with Mare's apology.

Then they did the unthinkable.

The twins hugged Ainz's bony legs, one dark elf for each tibia.

Aura jumped off first, "Sorry for tricking you, Ainz-sama! Let's go, Mare!"

Mare nodded, and bowed to Ainz before they left.

Ainz's jaw dropped to the floor, "What the hell was that?"

* * *

**Albedo**

* * *

Albedo still thought it was odd.

Knowing how Lady Tiamat and Ainz-sama were, they would have most definitely told the Floor Guardians if they were testing them: just like that time Ainz-sama and Lady Tiamat were testing their teamwork capabilities by telling them to defeat that Giant Tree.

However, a plan was a plan, and she had no choice but to follow the majority's decision.

Albedo made her way down to the Treasury. The rest of the Guardians had taken it upon themselves to wear a costume for the day in accordance with the plan. Therefore, before the Supreme Beings started the day, she had to go prepare her costume.

She walked down to the Treasury, carefully maneuvering around the traps in the stairway.

After a long and tortuous journey, Albedo finally found herself before the doors of the Treasury.

"Pandora's Actor," she called out as she pushed the massive doors open.

The egghead peeked his head out from a mountain of gold. Today wasn't the day where he got to have lunch with Lady Tiamat, moreover the voice calling out his name sounded distinctively different. Who else would bother to take the time to visit the deep sanctum of the Treasury?

Imagine his surprise when he saw that the Overseer of the Guardians of Nazarick had come to visit him in the Treasury all by herself.

"Ja?"

"I have come here to request something of you."

Pandora's Actor dug himself out of the mountain of gold and ran towards where Albedo was standing.

"Thank you for coming all this way, Guardian Overseer!" he saluted and bowed, "What is it that you need from me, Fraulein?"

"Let me borrow your clothes," Albedo bluntly stated.

"_Eh_?"

"You heard me, Pandora's Actor. I need to borrow your clothes."

"Are you perhaps referring to the armor hidden within Nazarick? The armor of the Supreme Beings, Guardian Overseer?"

"No. I need the clothes that you are wearing right now," she smiled sweetly at him.

"_Wozu zum Teufel brauchst du meine Klamotten?__! Pervers!_" he screamed out.

Albedo just stared at him, wide eyed, "Did you just insult me?"

"_Nein Nein!_" he shook his head. How did she know what he was saying?!

"Anyways," Albedo continued, taking his outrage in stride, "Are you willing to give me your clothes?"

"B-But, I won't have any clothes to wear for the rest of the day, Fraulein!"

Albedo sweetly smiled, "You're a doppelganger, right? You can just morph into that sofa for the rest of the day, and I'll do your work for today. How does that sound?"

"B-But my work was given to me by Ainz-sama!" Pandora's Actor tried to reason with the Overseer.

"Well you can also work naked," Albedo swiftly replied, "If you want Kyouhukou's children to see you naked that is."

Pandora's Actor seethed, "I won't give you my work _and _my clothes. Those are the two things that were given to me by _Mein Vader_, even if I were to lose and to be defeated by you, I won't—"

Albedo pulled out the cheese-cake she had been storing in her inventory.

"Turn around and in ten seconds you can grab my clothes off the floor."

Albedo followed his instructions with a satisfied smile.

After ten seconds, Albedo turned back around and there it was, an extra sofa, and a set of clothing laid neatly on the floor.

She bent down and picked up the clothes, putting down the cheesecake at where the clothes used to be.

"Please enjoy it."

And with that, Albedo had obtained her costume for Halloween.

* * *

"Ainz-sama," Albedo bowed as she entered the grand office where only a select few were allowed to enter.

Ainz nodded, his normal way of greeting. But his jaw dropped open again when he saw Albedo in his office, wearing a Neo-Nazi outfit that clearly belonged to Pandora's Actor.

The clothes fit Albedo like a glove, except that the limbs were too long, but she simply rolled them up to a three-quarter length of both her arms and her legs.

"A-Albedo, what are you wearing," Ainz coughed heavily in his fist, his body a shimmering emerald.

"Do you have sweets, Ainz-sama?" the Succubus asked the Overlord.

Ainz just emptily stared at Albedo, "No, I don't have sweets with me."

"Very well," Albedo nodded in understanding and proceeded to do her job as usual.

After a few minutes, when Ainz had decided to take a break in his room, Albedo put her plan into motion.

She sneakily walked to Ainz's table and moved his quill from the right side to the left.

Ainz was _right-handed._

Albedo couldn't wait until she told Shalltear about this.

* * *

**Shalltear**

* * *

"_Haaaaa?_" Shalltear screeched out in the bar, the shrill scream directed towards the Overseer of Nazarick who was clutching her left ear while grimacing in pain.

"Your voice is annoying, Shalltear."

"H-H-How despicable!" Shalltear stood up from her stool at the bar and pointed her finger at the Succubus. "How dare you move Ainz-sama's quill when you clearly knew he was right handed?!"

Albedo just smiled sweetly at her, her gold colored eyes gleaming in satisfaction as she rested her elbows on the table and her fingers interlocked under her chin.

"_No one is above the rules of trick or treat_. I would assume that Demiurge meant even the Supreme Beings themselves."

"That's true," Shalltear slowly sat back down on the stool, her energy spent. "I wonder what I should do to trick Ainz-sama…"

"I'm sure you'll come up with something," Albedo said, anticipation already building up in her stomach.

* * *

The furious knocking on the door ruined Ainz's concentration. He looked at Albedo and nodded, granting her permission to open the door.

He knew it wasn't Tiamat because she had a tendency to barge into the office unannounced or teleporting herself right in the middle of the office.

As soon as Albedo opened the door, Ainz saw something he shouldn't have ever seen.

There was only one person who would wear that kind of thing.

Shalltear sauntered to the Supreme Being's table, wearing her most treasured clothing given to her by her creator, Lord Peroroncino himself. Completed by a whip that she also brought with her.

She was wearing a full bodysuit of leather, with a hood that tucked in all her hair. The only thing that they could see was her face.

A _Leather Mistress bodysuit_.

There was no way Ainz was going to look at his children that way, and so, to preserve at least a shred of Shalltear's dignity, he looked down at his paperwork and swore to himself that he would not look up for as long as Shalltear was in his office.

"Shalltear, what can I do for you?" he asked even before Shalltear could reach his table, his red orbs directed towards the paper while his mind wandered aimlessly.

He was desperately trying to forget what he had seen.

"Ainz-sama, there is something I've been meaning to ask you."

"Go ahead."

"Do you have sweets to give me?"

'_Why is everyone asking me for sweets today…_' Ainz thought to himself, sighing.

"No, Shalltear. But if you want, I can ask Tia to bake you some sweets."

"It's alright Ainz-sama. With that being said, I'll be leaving," she bowed before she turned towards the door.

However, right before Shalltear walked out the door, she stopped and turned back to look at him.

"Is there anything else you need?" Ainz carefully asked as kept his head down. Everyone was acting weird today.

"I just wanted to say," Shalltear took a deep breath as she pulled her whip back, "It's time for a trick Ainz-sama~!"

Ainz's head was still down as the whip zipped towards him. Albedo quickly grabbed the whip out of the air with a tired look on her face.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"Why are you stopping me gorilla?! No one is above the rule of trick or treats!"

"I don't think your kind of trick is what Demiurge had mind, Lampr—Shalltear. Did you honestly think that hitting a Supreme Being is acceptable?"

"Shut up you virgin! You just want to win! HEY! PUT ME DOWN YOU MUSCLE BRAIN!" Shalltear screamed as Albedo picked her up by the waist and tossed her out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Ainz just stared at the door, his undead mind still trying to comprehend what he had seen.

He slowly got up from his chair.

"Ainz-sama, I got rid of Shalltear. You can rest easy now," Albedo tried to reassure the Supreme Being who was definitely distraught at being forced to see something so terrible.

"I-I think I should take a break for a while, Albedo. Please excuse me," with that, Ainz walked through the door connecting his office and his room

He fell face-down onto the bed, body sprawled out in mental exhaustion.

'_What the…'_

* * *

**Demiurge**

* * *

The day was almost over, and Demiurge had planned all he could so that they could pass the test.

He would do whatever it took to make this profitable to Nazarick, even if he had to sacrifice himself.

Throughout the entire day, Demiurge had observed that Ainz-sama didn't have sweets to give Aura and Mare, Albedo, and Shalltear. That meant there was a seventy five percent chance that Ainz wouldn't have sweets when Demiurge asked as well.

Demiurge knocked twice on the Supreme Being's office, and once the door was opened by Albedo, he confidently walked into the room.

"Ainz-sama," Demiurge bowed.

"Demiurge," Ainz acknowledged, but as soon as his eyes landed on the Demon, his jaw dropped open for the millionth time that day as his body was dyed in a bright green hue,"What...are you _wearing_?"

Demiurge, the most posh looking Floor Guardian whose suit was based off a British design and was always dressed as a gentleman had discarded all of them, and in front of Ainz—in his office—he was stark naked wearing nothing but a _speedo_.

"Ah, do you like my costume Ainz-sama? This is what the book in Ashurbanipal had told me about the sacred event that the Supreme Beings are allowed to join."

'_What is he talking about?!' _Ainz screamed out inside his head.

Afraid of losing the respect of the smartest Floor Guardian in Nazarick, Ainz immediately agreed with what Demiurge mentioned. "Hm, is that so, Demiurge."

"So you approve of this, Ainz-sama! Oh, and I also need sweets, preferably if it's from you."

"Sweets?" Ainz asked.

"Yes Ainz-sama, do you have them?"

Seeing how long it took for Ainz-sama to reply to him, Demiurge deduced that the Overlord didn't have sweets with him.

Demiurge couldn't help but smile at this revelation.

He had an elaborate plan to trick Ainz-sama, a trick that his Lord would never forget.

"I see, sweets huh?" Ainz's orbs flared to life. "Albedo, bring in the cookies," he quietly said.

The Demon was shocked, he had not expected this outcome. He was so sure that the Overlord in front of him wouldn't have any sweets with him.

Albedo gave him a small glass jar, filled to the brim with cookies, smiling in reverence at the wisdom that the Supreme Being had showed them.

"I asked Tiamat to bake this for me, since you Floor Guardians had been asking me for sweets. Do what you have to do for the glory of Nazarick."

Demiurge bowed, "Of course, Ainz-sama!"

As expected of the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown himself…

Demiurge should've known that Ainz-sama could turn a twenty five percent probability to his advantage.

'_Sasuga…'_

* * *

**Cocytus**

* * *

"No, no, you have to wrap it here Mare!" Aura shouted at her brother.

"B-But, that part was c-covered already Onee-san."

"It's still thin at that part, and that part as well," Aura barked out her orders and Mare obeyed diligently.

Cocytus huffed, his mandibles clicking in discomfort.

He was standing in the Throne Room, being tied and bandaged with green colored wrappings. Aura and Mare ran around him, wrapping the bandages around his entire armor like body, from head to toe.

"D-Don't forget the star bandana t-too."

"I got it Mare, thank you!" Aura smiled at the reminder and continued wrapping Cocytus with the green bandage.

Mare had read some books in Ashurbanipal explaining that festive events would have a tree being decorated with trinkets. Since they were in a rush, making Cocytus into a tree seemed like a good idea.

Also, Mare had asked Pandora's Actor if he could borrow some of the most colorful magical artifacts and gems to decorate Cocytus with.

Although the dark elf boy found it odd that his friend decided to transform into Ainz-sama, Pandora's Actor still gave him what he needed to decorate Cocytus.

"How. Long. Do. I. Have. To. Stand. Here?"

"The day is almost over," Aura answered, "So it would be a few hours at most,"

Cocytus huffed his breath as a sign of confirmation, and the twins continued excitedly.

Later they learned that what they did to Cocytus should only be done at Christmas and not on Halloween.

So it was fine to let him stand there for another two months, right?

* * *

**That night…**

"Ainz, I'm back!" Tiamat said as soon as she teleported inside his office.

Ainz sighed. He didn't have the energy to reply to her, so instead, he pulled out Tia's favorite response.

"Hn…"

"I baked a lot of sweets for the maids as well as the Pleiades and Floor Guardians, so I think we're set for two weeks. How about you? Did you finish any work?" she asked him with a smile.

Ainz finally lifted up his skull to look at her, "Do you know what happened today?"

"No," she replied, tilting her head curiously. His voice sounded so tired. "Did something bad happen?"

Tiamat walked closer to where he was and stood near him, trying to comfort him as best as she could while rubbing his back.

Ainz sighed yet again, "The Floor Guardians asked me for sweets all day. At first it was Aura and Mare; at least those two are cute. But then Albedo came in with a Neo-Nazi outfit and... and I thought I no longer had a heart, but apparently I do, because it was _the best cosplay I have ever witnessed in my entire life_!" he vigorously straightened up, before slumping back down as the ever-present suppression ran its course.

"Woah, she did?" Tiamat replied to him excitedly. "Albedo in a Neo-Nazi outfit, huh? Isn't that right up your alley?"

But even before Ainz could answer her question, he was reminded of _that_.

"But then, I saw Shalltear in that _blasted _Leather Costume Peroroncino created."

Tiamat tilted her head at the last word.

"What's that?"

"A whole suit made out of leather."

"So it's some sort of costume?"

Ainz's eyes trailed off to the ceiling, "There are more connotations to it than that…"

Tiamat just looked at him, confused.

"I will just let you do your own research."

"Alright. Then, what happened next?"

"It gets worse. You see, my undead eyes," Ainz poked a finger through his empty socket, "Just saw Demiurge wearing nothing but a speedo."

"A _what_?!"

"A speedo, a form-fitting swimming pant that only covers your butt—"

"I know what a speedo is," Tiamat tried to stop Ainz as she didn't want to imagine Demiurge wearing nearly nothing. "The question is why…?"

Ainz sighed for the third time ever since she had arrived in his office, "I don't know. I'm just glad Cocytus didn't do anything weird today. Plus, they also said something about needing sweets, and I have no idea why."

"Oh, Cocytus? I just saw him in the Throne Room. The twins are dressing him up with green cloth and a star on his head. I think they're trying to make him look like a Christmas tree," Tiamat suppressed a grin before she continued, "For the sweets, I think it's because I just explained to them what Halloween was. To be honest, I kinda expected Nazarick to be half destroyed or something, because you look so..._dead_."

"Wait, what?"

"What?"

"What did you say?"

"About Cocytus?"

"No, after that."

"You look dead? That's a bad joke on my part since you already looked dead anyways."

"_No_," that was indeed a bad joke, he agreed inside his head, "Before that."

"_Oh._ I just explained what Halloween was to Cocytus and the twins this afternoon."

Ainz stood up and slammed his hands on the table, "SO IT WAS YOU!" His bones shone green before he calmed down and sat back in his chair

"Eh?"

"You were the cause of all of this... this _madness,_" Ainz declared accusingly, "I have never felt so...betrayed. How could you, Tiamat?"

"W-W-What are you talking about?"

"An Undead's mind never forgets. You just doomed me and my brain to a sight that I wasn't supposed to see in my entire immortal lifetime!" Another shimmer of green made his way across his skull.

"H-Hey, that's not fair! I didn't order them to do anything," she furrowed her eyebrows as she tried to justify herself, "I just told them what trick or treat was. Besides, didn't you just say that Albedo had the best cosplay you had ever seen in your entire lifetime?"

"If that was the price I had to pay to see that Neo-Nazi cosplay, then I'd rather not. It was a sight that would burn your eyes instantly."

"Oh…"

The two of them sat there quietly in despair.

One was gloomy because he had seen something traumatizing, and one was wondering where had things gone wrong in this dysfunctional family.

The next unanswered question that came to the Dragoness's mind was how Ainz knew so much about _leather mistresses _and _speedos_.

* * *

**A/N: Character development time! YATA! I think this Halloween Omake is a masterpiece XD So much crack holy moly...**

**Hackslashbash: I hope we managed to show some characterization in Albedo. The lack of that in the LN always disappointed me. Also, we hit a massive 70 pages in this chapter, making this the longest chapter yet! ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range**r**efreshing **d**rink** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	22. CHAPTER 22: Beyond Limits

**Non-canon Omake Event: Pancake Incident **

_**Written by UndeadLord22**_

* * *

"No, no! Don't put the syrup there yet!"

"W-Well what should I do!?"

Tiamat huffed in annoyance before turning off the stove; extinguishing the out of control flame that was burning the pan.

"H-How did you manage to burn something so simple?!"

Ainz sighed, repeating his mantra of the day for the thousandth time, "I told you the reason, Tia."

To understand what is going on, let us review the earlier moments.

* * *

**Earlier… **

Ainz was lying down in his bedroom.

He couldn't really rest since he was not physically alive, but he was still able to rest his mind from all the_ hell_ he had been going through for quite a while.

So far, he had been resting on his bed for twenty minutes; an amount of time which seemed to feel like a week for him.

'_What to do…'_

"MOMO-CHAN!" The voice of Tiamat suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"GAH!" Our favorite skeleton overlord literally _jumped_ from his bed. How wild is that?

"Momo-chan!"

"T-Tia!" a green aura briefly enveloped his body before disappearing. "What are you doing here? Is there something you need?"

"Nope!" she cheerfully said. "But I need you to come with me, I got a surprise for you!"

Her wide smile told Ainz that he was not going to like this very much.

"...If it's going to be—"

"No, I swear, it's not gonna be _that_!" the dragoness waved her hands in dismay, recalling that one scene that was so _horrible_ that not even the devil would like it. She had never meant for Demiurge to wear such an outfit.

"It's something else that you might like!" A 『Gate』popped up behind her. "Come on!"

Ainz sighed as he let Tiamat drag him into the swirling oval portal. He could just simply use his ring to teleport away and go some-floor else, but he was too mentally exhausted to think properly.

He began to mentally prepare for whatever was going to be on the other side.

But exactly what he was expecting…?

"Ta-da~!"

"...What is this?"

"Huh? We're in the kitchen, silly!"

Indeed they were in the kitchen, located in the cafeteria on the 9th floor of the Tomb. But the question was…

"Why did you drag me here?"

"It's to teach you how to cook!"

Ainz's red eyes flickered, slowly and surely.

"...Why? I'm undead, I can't eat," he deadpanned. "And also, I don't know how to cook."

"Actually, it's to prepare you for when you might need to be cooking for someone else, and I will be teaching you!" Tiamat proudly pounded her chest.

Ainz then noticed that she was wearing an apron embroidered with the words: "Cooking is the best!"

Our favorite overlord didn't know what to do. But honestly, learning how to cook might ease his mind a little. Doing nothing in his room would just grant him boredom; sure, it would relax his mind more, but he felt that such a tactic would become unsustainable.

Cooking for him was not useful since he literally didn't know how to cook. But since Tia here was willing to teach him, he might as well give it a try. It had been a while since they've done something just with the two of them.

It would be tragic if he accidently got the『Cook』class like Tia did.

"...Any simple dishes you can teach me how to cook?"

Tia beamed brightly after his statement. He would later regret that he accepted his friend's offer, but later on in the future he would thank her for it.

And now, back to the present.

* * *

**Present. . .**

'_I may well have unleashed something dangerous…'_ Ainz sweatdropped as he barely managed to follow his friend's instructions on doing his first dish: a pancake.

As simple as it sounded, it was incredibly hard for our favorite overlord to work it out.

Tiamat was almost like a drill sergeant shouting at new recruits in their first week of boot camp.

And it was scary.

He was thankful that at least there was no one present with them, and the whole kitchen was left empty just for them.

Although it was kinda funny to see a dragoness shouting over a lich trying to make pancakes.

"Ah, great. Now you've burnt the whole thing!"

"A-Ah crap!"

"Gimme that!" Tiamat snatched the pan from Ainz's hands, furiously scrubbing away the blackened charcoal from the pan. "How are you not able to even cook a decent pancake!?"

Ainz had already cooked at least twenty pancakes, and all of them looked like burnt charcoal.

"Maybe because I don't have the Cook job?"

"Then explain how I was able to cook without having Cook as a class job!?"

"I-"

"It's either you just suck at cooking, or you really have no passion at all," Tiamat had unknowingly jabbed a spear into Ainz's heart.

"But I do know how to cook!" Ainz tried to argue. "I just need some practice."

"Heating up a cup of noodles doesn't mean you _know_ how to **COOK**!" she shouted. She placed down the cleaned pan. The device was now shiny and shivering, splendid-

"Now, again!"

This went on for several hours before Tiamat just simply gave up.

* * *

"_*Sigh* _You really don't know how to cook, do you?" the dragoness said tiredly, looking over the small mountain of burnt charcoal in front of them.

"It was a useless attempt…" Ainz was sitting down on a chair with his head down low.

He had never felt so disappointed in his lack of cooking abilities!

Well to be fair, it literally was his first time cooking a homemade dish, since he normally just went out to stores and bought ready-to-eat foodstuffs to heat up back home. Occasionally, he would eat at some cheap food stall as his reward. A meal at a cheap food stall was almost as expensive as high-class restaurants back when food wasn't just bland synthetic jelly.

The fact that he failed to cook something so simple caused something inside him to snap.

He felt challenged!

"Maybe next time you'll be able to cook properly," Tiamat looked at him pitifully.

"Hmmm…"

"Hm? Thinking about something?"

"I'll… try to cook again?"

Tia looked at him with a raised brow, her almost amused eyes filled with pity. Ainz trying to cook was something she now found impossible due to the… results he made. But knowing him, she could only tell him:

"Alright, call me if you need help ok?"

Ainz mutely nodded as he looked over the cooking-wares in front of him.

Tiamat could only look at him before letting out a sigh and teleported out of the room, leaving Ainz to silently contemplate what went wrong.

"...Maybe if I…" Ainz said, coming upon an idea that he and Tiamat may have overlooked.

* * *

"I wonder how Ainz is doing…?"

"Is something wrong, Lady Tiamat?" Yuri asked while gently grooming her master's hair.

"Ah, it's about Ainz, Yuri."

"Is there something wrong with Ainz-sama?" _'Have we disappointed him?'_ Yuri couldn't help but think that, but her fears were wiped off from her mind immediately as Tiamat reassured her it wasn't that.

She wanted to ask that too...

"No," Tia shook her head. "It's not that, its something else entirely. I've been trying to help Ainz cook."

Yuri widened her eyes and made a small gasp at such a revelation. _'Ainz-sama, cooking!?'_

"Lady Tiamat, I'm sure that Ainz-sama doesn't need to worry himself with a small task like cooking."

Tiamat laughed softly. "Don't stress yourself out, Yuri-san. Besides, it's for his own good."

* * *

After Yuri had finished brushing her hair, Tiamat headed towards Ainz's office to continue helping out with the paperwork.

_For punishment reasons._

"Here I am- wait what?" what was in her sights confused her.

Ainz was nowhere to be seen.

"Maybe he's in the bedroom…?" Tiamat muttered to herself.

Since he was Undead and couldn't rest, maybe he was just calming his head?

'_Nah, he can do that while checking the papers out,'_ she thought, knowing that it was a common activity for Ainz even when Albedo wasn't around.

Which were rare moments.

"Ainz! Wha…?"

He wasn't in his bedroom.

'_Where the hell could he be…?'_

And speak of the devil…

_[Tiamat!]_

"Gah!" she jumped in fright, her mind slowly realizing that it was Ainz using 『Message』 in her head.

_[A-Ainz!?]_

_[Ah, did I surprise you? Sorry.]_

_[Where the hell are you bonehead!]_ she pouted.

_[Ah, in the kitchen.]_

She blinked. _[Wait, are you still cooking!?]_ she asked in disbelief.

_[Yeah… And can you check this out? I'm not sure if this tastes good since I'm Undead. And I don't want to ask anyone else since they might get the wrong idea]_

_[...Be right there]_

* * *

**In Za Kitchen. . .**

"Alright, I hope you didn't burn down the kitchen otherwise the cooks would get mad."

"Ah, Tiamat-san," Ainz greeted.

"Now, where's the food you want me to taste?" Tiamat looked around and saw no food in sight. Was he joking?

"Here," Ainz moved to the side, revealing behind him a covered tray.

"...Why do you need to cover it?"

"Just open it and see it for yourself," the skeleton sighed, but his words were somewhat filled with pride—and that somehow rhymed.

"Alright…?" she said awkwardly before making her way to the covered tray. She was about to open it but an overwhelming smell suddenly grabbed onto her nose.

'_W-What the hell is this!?'_ she thought. _'What is this aura am I feeling? And it's coming from food of all things!'_

"Before I open it Ainz, what did you cook?" she turned to the undead.

Ainz simply shrugged. "A pancake like you said. I didn't gain a Cook class or anything like that."

"Oh really…~?"

'_I am not buying that crap, not even once you bonehead!'_

She mentally prepared her eyes for whatever abomination Ainz had made out of a frigging _pancake_ of all things and opened the tray.

Her world suddenly turned a bright golden yellow.

"W-WHAT THE HELL-!?"

Her sight, her hearing, her orientation, her everything crashed all around like a washing machine.

"GAHHHHH MY EYES!"

The wave of light instantly brightened up the Great Tomb of Nazarick, and its inhabitants were panicking and confused as to what was going on.

The light continued to escape from the underground, and eventually made its way outside from the entrance of the Mausoleum.

The golden light engulfed the lands of the NW, all of its inhabitants basking in the glorious light. Some bowed down in prayer, others panicked thinking it was the return of the Demon Gods, or another event like the Greed Kings.

For the religion, specifically the f**kin fanatics. The whole of the Slane Theocracy stood, bowed, kneeled, cried out in prayer. Thinking that this was the day that their Gods, the Six Gods were returning to bring glory and prosperity to Humanity and eliminate the threats towards it.

Slowly but surely, the light engulfed the whole world.

The Dragon Lords were panicking.

The Elves stood and gasped.

The Humans were afraid.

Throughout the entire world, everyone(except the SL since most of the population are fanatic zealots) had one thing on their minds:

It was Judgement Day.

Almost after the world was covered in the bright gold wave, the light spread outwards. It spread through the cosmic space like water flowing outwards.

Its light covered worlds, planets; almost the whole galaxy was filled with a bright light that erased from existence the most evil of creatures in the deepest parts of the galaxy. Not even a speck of ash or dust of them remained.

Soon after and yet unexpectedly, this came to the attention of all the powerful beings throughout different dimensions.

"...? What is this feeling?" (Marvel - The One Above all)

"_**Is that a fragment of mine…?"**_ (WH40K - The God Emperor of Mankind himself)

"Did time crashed…?" (Doctor Who - Doctor Who, the 11th Doctor)

"..." (Marvel Comics - Death)

"This… This is the power of the God Emperor! THE EMPEROR, PROTECTS!" (WH40K - Majority of the Imperium)

"So I guess it's time, the world is being cleansed from evil." (DC Comics - Lucifer Morningstar)

"Is this the Anti-Spiral's work!?" (Gurren Lagann - Simon)

All beings through different worlds, different galaxies, different planes, and different dimensions. All were engulfed in a golden light and the most evil and dangerous beings that were a threat to the cosmic reality had been undone.

**Back in the kitchen. . .**

"WHAT KIND OF PANCAKE DID YOU MAKE!? Tiamat screamed. Even with her high-quality resist and immunity stats, it still could not help her to avoid being blinded by the light.

"Oh, just a pancake I made from this book we've made," Ainz held up a cooking book saying: "Cooking Recipes For Dummies."

Ainz could still see because he was wearing a high-class, magically enchanted anti-glare sunglasses.

Tiamat, while covering her eyes from the bright light, covered the pancake with the food tray.

"...You don't like it?"

"What do you- IT WAS BRIGHT!" she exclaimed frustratingly. "How the hell did you manage to cook such a thing when it could have blinded you?"

"Oh, I just simply used『Create Greater Magic Item』to create this enchanted pair of sunglasses to avoid the glare."

"But that still doesn't answer the question on how you managed to COOK SUCH A THING!" Tiamat shouted this time.

"I just followed the instruction on that book…" Ainz lazily pointed at the book literally right beside Tiamat.

The dragoness immediately grabbed the book and turned to the page on "How to cook Pancakes."

"B-But, this is just what I instructed you to!"

"Well, apparently there can be two reasons: One, is that your teaching on cooking is bad. Second, is that when I followed the cooking book, I was able to cook in a… _glowing_ state."

"THAT PANCAKE IS LITERALLY THE MOST PERFECT OF ALL PANCAKES I'VE EVER SEEN!"

Ainz blinked. He had experienced loudness from his old comrades, including her, but he had never heard Tiamat shout like that before.

"W-What?"

"Your. Pancake… IS TOO *** PERFECT!"

* * *

**A/N: Welcome to the team, Lightblade23! And thank you Razel Treasure for beta-ing this chapter!**

**Hackslashbash: The above omake was an event we hosted for our discord. Come join in to chat about a variety of silly topics!**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal**

**Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth**

**Volume XLI, Chapter IV: Hunters**

In the distance stood a mighty fortress. A city whose name has long been lost to the passing of countless eons.

The dragon warily approached the gates of the fortress; she had been forcibly kicked out of every human settlement she had visited, but perhaps this one would be different. A source had told her that the community before her accepted races of all kinds, even heteromorphs.

The moment she reached the gates, she noticed the hostile stares of humans bearing down upon her.

Wasn't this place supposed to be a refuge for all?

Why then, was there so much animosity?

As the dragon pondered this question, a rock flew towards her head accompanied by an angry shout.

It dealt her no harm, for a mere rock could not hope to scratch her inviolable scales. However, the dragon was shocked at the resentment shown towards her kind. Did her source lie to her?

Her question was quickly answered when an empowered bolt of arcane energies slammed into her. She had been ambushed; her source had led her into a trap.

The dragon quickly stood up and dashed away from the village into the open fields, before glancing at her assailants.

They were a group of humans and elves dressed in classic hunter's attire. It was an appearance she and many other heteromorphs were well acquainted with.

The Hunters, a dastardly guild that had a reputation for "hunting beasts".

In other words, non-humans like her. They cackled as they stared at the foolish beast through their cross-sights. There would be no escape from them.

She fought back with desperate strength, her impenetrable scales defending her from those who would see her slain.

Countless days of mind-numbing slaughter passed, as the plains were dyed in the blood of mortals.

Finally, the Dragon stood alone in the field of carnage. She had accomplished the impossible; she had driven away the Hunters.

Sadly, her peace was not to last.

* * *

**Chapter 22: Beyond Limits**

* * *

Cocytus stood in front of the regal majestic doors and knocked twice with his hand.

The door opened with a silent creak as he was greeted by a familiar beautiful succubus, the Overseer of the Guardians of Nazarick, Albedo.

"Ainz-sama has been waiting for you," she said, with an angelic smile, nothing in her expression had given him any hints on why he had been called to the office.

Cocytus took a deep breath and exhaled, causing a cold mist to spread in front of him, before he walked inside, the succubus closing the door behind him.

In the center of the office sat a skeletal being of pure white and clothed in night itself. The Supreme Being emitted an overwhelming aura of dread as the souls of the ***ed silently screamed from his divine robes.

The Overlord sat surrounded by a multitude of masterful paintings and books with titles Cocytus could not even begin to comprehend. Furthermore, since the Supreme Being was a skeleton, it was extremely difficult for Cocytus to pinpoint his master's emotions.

"Ainz. Sama." he greeted with the deepest bow to the leader of Nazarick himself.

Ainz raised his palm to stop him from doing so, "There's no need to be so formal, Cocytus,"

Cocytus raised his head, "Yes."

"Do you know the reason why you have been called here?" the Overlord asked his subject.

"I. Have. No. Clue. Ainz. Sama."

Ainz nodded his head, his eyes gleaming as they bore into the Guardian of the Fifth Floor.

"Do you remember when you watched Tia's battle with Shalltear?"

"Yes. It. Was. A. Battle. I. Can. Never. Forget." he put a hand over where his heart was to stop it from palpitating.

He still remembered that wonderful sight as if it was yesterday.

Their Lady who had entered a battle that was impossible to win, had instead returned triumphantly.

The Overlord's eyes gleamed once again, a small fire running amok in his pits, "And did you remember what you said about the battle's odds?"

Cocytus gulped.

Since the outcome was different from what he had guessed, Cocytus knew that the Overlord must be angry with him.

"It. Was. One. To. Nine. With. Lady. Tiamat. Being. One."

"One to nine, hm?"

"I. Apologize. Ainz. Sama!" he bowed, "It. Was. Not. My. Intention. To. Belittle. Lady. Tiamat!" he bowed again in shame.

Now he knew why he was being called here.

Surely, he was here to receive his punishment for insulting the strength of a Supreme Being.

However, what his ruler said next shocked him completely.

"I agree with you, Cocytus."

"Excuse. Me?" he blinked confusedly.

"I think that idio—" he coughed, "I mean, Tiamat, I think she needs to be trained."

Cocytus huffed yet again.

Training the Supreme Being herself?

'_What an honor!'_

His tail shook in excitement, as he tried to hide how happy he was, before remembering that he was in front of Ainz Ooal Gown, the Supreme Being and the ruler of them all.

"Training. Lady. Tiamat?" he asked, just to be sure.

"Yes. It turns out this world's system is different from our original one's. A while ago, Tia found out that we can raise our levels beyond the level cap, making our potential power limitless," Ainz explained.

Cocytus looked at him once again, '_What?_'

"That is why I want you to fix that mess of a build—I mean, train her. Make her strong. I want you as a warrior to find out her weakness and to eliminate them entirely," Ainz commanded. "Do you understand, Cocytus?"

Cocytus stood up straighter, "It. Will. Be. As. You. Will!"

( ・ω)( ・)( )(・ )(ω・ )(・ω・)

The Dragoness should have detected his intent when he suddenly launched his tail in her direction at lightning speed.

It was only instinct that prevented the deadly point of his tail from hitting her straight in the face.

She threw her forearms up in panic, but he slipped through to her unprotected sides, his hand aimed straight at her solar plexus.

He attacked with the intention to kill.

She internally screamed; the punch had caught her completely off-guard.

The blow was so powerful that she skidded back a few meters. If it had been anyone else, they would've found their bones shattered to dust and their organs liquified. Thankfully, she only received a minor bruise.

Afraid of getting smacked again, she released her wings and flew away from him so that he couldn't reach her.

"W-Wh-What was that for, Cocytus?!"

"Such. Hard. Skin." Cocytus said in awe down at the other end of the arena.

She looked at the blue insectoid once again, and when she saw that there was nothing hostile about his posture, she flew back to the center of the arena where Cocytus was.

"That seriously scared me," she sighed, relieved.

"I. Apologize. My. Lady. But. I. Had. To. Gauge. Your. Ability. Spontaneously." Cocytus huffed out a cloud of cold mist, his eyes blinking with guilt.

It was not his intention to frighten the Supreme Being who loved them so.

Upon seeing Cocytus knock Lady Tiamat back, Aura and Mare leapt down from the VIP area ran to the Goddess in a blink of an eye.

"My Lady! Are you okay?!" Aura panickedly asked Tiamat.

"C-Cocytus, what w-was that for?!" Mare frowned in a rare moment of agitation, placing himself between the Vermin Lord and the Supreme Being.

Before Cocytus could open his mandibles to respond, Lady Tiamat intervened.

"Don't worry, Cocytus was just testing my abilities. I'm perfectly fine, see?" she lifted her forearm up for the twins to see.

"Nuh uh! I see a bruise right here!" Aura jabbed the tiny purple spot on Tiamat's forearm. "Mare! Come over here and heal Lady Tiamat!"

"Y-Yes! 『Cure Wounds』!" Mare put his hand on the miniscule bruise and covered it with a light green aura. The discoloration slowly faded as clear skin took its place on her forearm once more.

"There! Now you're all good, and Cocytus!" Aura pointed at the Blue Insect with a scowl, "You better be more careful with Lady Tiamat!"

"B-But Onee-san, Lady Tiamat said they were training. A-And he has to hit hard if they're trying to get stronger."

As the twins continued to argue with each other, Cocytus just watched their interaction from a distance.

He looked down at his trembling right arm that was still numb after punching Lady Tiamat.

Even though the Supreme Being before him bore the appearance of a halfling, her Divine Class meant that her skin was far stronger than that of even heteromorphs.

When Cocytus had struck her in the stomach, he had felt his bones shake.

The scales were hundreds of times harder than his own exoskeleton.

It was so thick and tough, that Cocytus's physical attack had been rendered nearly useless. Granted, he was not specialized for hand-to-hand combat, but the fact that Lady Tiamat could easily withstand an attack from a being with physical attack as high as his was nothing short of awe-inspiring.

'_So. This. Is. A. Supreme. Being's. Strength…_'

Tiamat called out to Cocytus who had suddenly gone quiet.

"Cocytus?" she raised her arm upwards due to their height difference and waved it in front of his eyes.

Cocytus's eyes dimly gleamed as if he had blinked and lowered his head in apology. "Apologies. My. Lady. Are. You. Alright? Shall. I. Call. Pestonya?" he asked,worry lacing his words.

"Na, it's no problem, Cocytus. As you can see, I'm perfectly fine. It's just that you seriously surprised me, that's all," she smiled at him, reassuring him that everything was alright. "You must be here because of the practice routine I asked you about, right?"

"Correct. My. Lady."

"So why the sudden punch?" she asked.

"You. Mentioned. That. You. Wanted. To. Train. With. Me. My. Lady. And. Therefore. I. Have. To. Gauge. Your. Strength. And. Weaknesses." he huffed, "In. That. Single. Move. I. Have. Found. The. Best. Training. Routine. For. You."

It took a few seconds for the information to sink in, but Cocytus saw that she eventually understood his meaning because right before his eyes, she broke out into a wide smile as her eyes seemed to sparkle in wonder.

"That's amazing, Cocytus! As expected of the best Warrior in Nazarick!" she exclaimed in awe, as if what he did was breathtaking. Cocytus looked at her sheepishly; to him, this was just something that he thought almost all the Floor Guardians could do. It certainly wasn't anything special. "So, what's the routine?"

Cocytus stood up a little straighter after hearing his Lady praise him. "I. Read. In. Ashurbanipal. About. A. Man. Who. Was. Able. To. Become. Strong. By. Using. This. Method."

Tiamat nodded enthusiastically.

"We. Will. Start. With. Ten. Kilometers. Of. Running. One. Hundred. Pushups. And. One. Hundred. Situps. Today."

Her face immediately fell into shock.

"Hold on a second."

"So. Let. Us. Begin. Quickly. My. Lady." he put one of his hands on her shoulder.

"No wait, that's impossible! I've never run a day in my life, and _there's no way that's a real training routine!_" she screamed out, but sadly it fell on deaf ears.

Cocytus dragged her with him anyways, his warrior blood boiling in excitement.

( ・ω)( ・)( )(・ )(ω・ )(・ω・)

Tiamat had run across the entire diameter of the Sixth Floor twice, ending up with a little over ten kilometers.

Once she was finished, she was looking at her body confusedly.

"Cocytus, did we just run ten kilometers in one go?"

"Yes. My. Lady."

Tiamat worryingly looked at her fist.

The changes her body had experienced were..._astounding_.

To be able to run across such a long distance without breaking a sweat would have been an impossible feat for her just a few months before.

Back when she was on Earth, she was always sprawled out on her bed at the end of the day, tired from the labor intensive work of managing the bakery as well as churning the daily bread all by herself.

But now, even if she did something that could be considered superhuman, she wouldn't even break a sweat.

This made her realize that the body she was in was not truly hers.

This body was not her body.

Her palm trembled in disbelief.

She had never felt so stupid.

Why did she only realize this just now…

The difference in strength, muscle mass, fat, and height were too significant compared to her previous body.

'_How scary…_'

This realization made her aware that _this_ was her current reality.

"My. Lady?" Cocytus asked.

He saw that as the Dragoness finished her first run, she skidded to a stop and had been staring at her palm for quite some time now.

"Should. We. Take. A. Break?" he continued when his Lady didn't reply.

But she didn't hear a word he said, because Tiamat was thinking about someone else.

'_Then what about Ainz?_' she realized. '_He must've been shocked to see that his body had turned into a skeleton._'

A deep sadness suddenly ingrained itself in her heart. To think that she had been happily frolicking around, all while her dear friend must have been suffering by himself.

"My. Lady?" Cocytus put a hand on her shoulder.

"Y-Yes?"

"Is. Everything. Alright?" he asked, his voice filled with concern.

Tiamat smiled, "Yes, Cocytus," she put her hand on top of his, "Shall we finish up now?"

Cocytus nodded, and they continued.

Tiamat made a mental note to talk to Ainz later.

( ・ω)( ・)( )(・ )(ω・ )(・ω・)

Since Cocytus thought that the workout had been too easy on the Supreme Being, he had increased the difficulty by adding weights on both of her legs, along her arms, and across her back: causing her to look like she had a bunch of potato sacks tied to her body.

Once he saw that the weights only slowed her down marginally, he increased the distance; ten kilometers turned into thirty, thirty turned to fifty, fifty turned to one hundred, and before she knew it, she had run until she couldn't feel her legs.

After her marathon around the Sixth Floor, the Dragoness shakily flew to the center of the arena before crashing to the ground with a loud _thud_, causing small clouds of sand to fly around her entire body.

"N-No more…" she gasped, clutching her chest in pain.

As someone who has never run in her life before, she had never experienced this kind of pain.

Her muscles were painfully sore from the endless running with weights. Every time she breathed in, she felt like her lungs was about to burst, and her heart pounded loudly enough for her to sincerely believe that it was about to explode out of her ear.

Cocytus huffed his breath, "Mare." he said simply.

"Y-Yes!" Mare ran towards where his Lady was sprawled out and cast a restoration spell.

As soon as Tiamat felt Mare casting 『Cure Wounds』, she closed her eyes and tried to relax. The magic felt like a cool breeze on her abused muscles: trading the pain away with a soft, relaxing feeling, dissolving all the tension in her muscles. Almost immediately, the pain eased to nothing.

Tiamat breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank you, Mare," she said with a smile, gently petting his soft blonde tuft of hair as he leaned into her touch.

"Y-You're w-welcome," Mare put out his hand for the Supreme Being to take as he helped her stand back up on her feet.

Healing skills were ridiculous when translated to real life. If you bled for a bit, just cast a simple healing spell. Muscle pain? Healing spell. Torn muscle? Healing spell. Tired? Jam that healing spell over and over again.

If she was sore, she could cast a healing spell so that she could continue her exercise. She abused her spells and skills so much that she thought that there would be a small chance that her training would amount to nothing because her muscle density would always revert to how it was before the exercises.

But she could research that later. For now, she just wanted to be free from the pain and suffering of _exercising_.

"My Lady!" Aura shouted out as she ran towards the Dragoness, "That was amazing! You ran like a million times around the Sixth Floor without stopping!"

Tiamat giggled at the hyperbole, "I don't think I ran that many times, Aura."

"But still, as expected of a Supreme Being!" her mismatched eyes twinkled in excitement, and her brother nodded enthusiastically.

She smiled, moving to pull the twins in before she caught the scent of an unfamiliar being.

"By the way Aura?"

"Yes, My Lady?"

"What's that smell?" Tiamat moved her head around, sniffing the air.

"What smell?" Aura stared confusedly, before her eyes lit up in understanding, "Oh! _Thaaaaaaat_ smell! That's the new pet that Ainz-sama brought back from outside!"

"Ainz brought in a pet from outside?" Tiamat squinted her eyes in bewilderment. Ainz, the man who had refused to buy any sort of real food for himself, got a pet?

"Yeah! It's like this big fluffy ball with a snake tail, and I really, _reaaaally, _want his pelt!" Aura excitedly blabbered.

"It sounds super cute, Aura!" Tiamat tightly hugged the twins and ruffled their tufts of golden blonde hair, "By the way, do you want to show me this pet?"

Aura tore her face away from Tiamat's chest, "Yeah! I'll bring her over right now!" the young dark elf dashed into the forest while yelling, "Hamsuke! Get over here!"

Tiamat and Mare watched as Aura disappeared into the forest.

"So Mare, are you doing okay? Do you need anything?"

"I-I'm fine, My Lady," Mare stuttered as his eyes was trailing away from the Dragoness, his face as red as a tomato from the sudden attention she gave him.

"Well, if you ever want something, just tell me, alright? And don't let your sister bully you all the time either," Tiamat pinched Mare's cheeks.

"Y-Yesh, Mah Ladhy," Mare said with stretched cheeks.

At that moment, Aura returned with a truly bizarre creature in tow.

"Lady Tiamat, I'm back!" Aura waved her hand as the beast skittishly approached them.

Tiamat stared at Ainz's supposed 'pet'.

'_There's no way…'_

"Is that… is that a hamster?"

"A hamster? What's a hamster?" Aura asked curiously.

Tiamat just gaped at the animal in front of her with eyes full of wonder.

Hamsuke, who was led by the small elf dressed in boy's clothing had tucked her scaly tail between her legs. The person in front of her smelled similar to the Frost Dragons she had met on this Floor. However, she could smell something different. Something inherently more..._powerful_.

It whimpered, head frantically looking around for the nearest exit, but once her eyes landed on the elf who had brought her there, she knew that there was nothing she could do.

Hamsuke's eyes landed once more on the baby dragons behind the red lady. In her time in the Forest, she had seen the big white dragon that followed the lady around. The aura of power that surrounded the dragon left a deep impression within her.

But it had never seen the baby dragons behind the red lady before. _'Would I be fed to them? Was that all she was, fodder? Was Master bored already? Was I about to let it be eaten by this beast that was far stronger?'_

All these questions ran in her head.

"I-I am Hamsuke! T-The W-Wise King of the F-Forest, gozaru!" she bravely declared. Ignoring her fears.

"Cute."

"Eh?"

"Hamsuke is so cute!" Tiamat cooed and proceeded to jump into her fluffy body, "A real live Djungarian Hamster!"

"Do you know my species, gozaru?"

"Yes, we used to have a Djungarian Hamster as a mascot for the guild before."

"You do, gozaru!" Hamsuke asked, her initial fears forgotten, "Does this mean I can marry, gozaru?"

Tiamat let go of her hold on the hamster, and just smiled sadly at Hamsuke. She didn't have the heart to tell her that Nazarick's mascot existed in another dimension and was already dead to boot.

The cause of death: _suffocation_.

Pentakrisis, who was slumbering in the nearby vicinity, cackled as from within the forest, his rumbling reaching even to the arena. He was comparing Hamsuke to the small hamster from his master's memories and imagining Hamsuke dying from the same cause.

That poor hamster didn't deserve it, but there was nothing the guild could do; it wasn't like they were in the presence of mind to change the filter in the house. Of course, for them it was as easy as putting on a gas mask to filter the air. But for that poor hamster, the only solution was death.

After that, they vowed to never have a real life mascot ever again.

To offset the dark thoughts, Tiamat proceeded to glomp the twins instead.

She smiled at them, nonchalantly pulling both of them into her arms. She had made a habit of wrapping both of them around her every chance she got, every time, thanking the universe that it was at least kind enough to allow her this.

"Both of you are so adorable~" she cooed, pulling them closer into her arms.

Despite the Supreme Being's weight bearing down on their small frames, mismatched green and blue looked at each other and saw their own thoughts reflected in the other.

Their hearts fluttered at the feeling of her body pressed against theirs as they sunk into her warmth. Her touch made the place warmer somehow.

It was a gesture of affection that told them that they were safe, an embrace where they were cocooned better than any butterfly to-be. The arms that held them were soft yet strong, and it soothed them more than what they would expect from such slender limbs.

Aura snuggled closer to Tiamat's chest, "Lady Tiamat is the only person in Nazarick that gives infinite hugs!"

Tiamat snickered, "Well, where else would I rather be?" she replied so easily.

In that moment, their arms squeezed around her a fraction tighter and they breathed more slowly; their bodies melting into hers as their every muscle lost its tension to her touch, knowing that they would never be truly alone as long as their Lady was with them.

Cocytus watched their interaction from a distance.

Every time he saw them, a small feeling grew in his chest as it attempted to erase the pride he currently felt. It took awhile for him to pinpoint exactly what it was.

Envy.

They stood there with a smile that could light up the world.

He couldn't deny that the scene in front of him was lovely. How lucky for the twins that they were created in such a way that would increase his Lady's motherly nature. But sadly, he was stuck standing there within an appearance where his skin was meshed with his own armor.

So of course, nothing about him said anything adorable.

It's not that he was disappointed. He was proud that his creator decided to create him this way; a strong warrior that could protect Nazarick.

A brilliant carapace that gleamed with the might of unshakable glaciers.

Stocky arms that spoke of might capable of moving mountains.

Deadly sharp protrusions that proclaimed his deadliness as a worry.

But despite all of that, he couldn't help but wonder at how the Supreme Beings would treat him if he had a different appearance.

He just wanted one aspect of their cuteness. Just one. Their adorable cheeks, their tininess, Aura's outgoing personality, or even Mare's honesty. One was enough.

If he had one of those, then would he be more approachable? Would he still loom over the Supreme Beings in height? Would his arms still be strong enough to protect Nazarick?

'_Would Lady Tiamat be at ease with me if I had a different appearance, just like Aura and Mare?'_ he huffed.

As he was thinking of these things, his eyes met with the Dragoness's, and she lifted her arms and waved them twice to call him over.

"Come here Cocytus, let's have a group hug!" she laughed out.

As soon as she said that, he rushed forward in a burst of life and joy, his limbs moving to circle around their frames.

He was so happy, he lifted all three of them in his embrace.

Their shrieks and smiles cleansed his soul, and reached the ears of him who had forgotten the warmth of such harmonies. And so he metaphorically closed his eyes and savored the moment, refusing to release his grip on them.

"That's not fair, I want hugs too, gozaru!"

( ・ω)( ・)( )(・ )(ω・ )(・ω・)

Ainz sat down in the library, accompanied by mountains of books surrounding him, as he read each and every page slowly.

Titus, the Chief Librarian, had even brought some more books to entertain him.

"'Twas the books thou hast sought, Milord."

"Excellent work, Titus. Put it right there please," his Lord pointed to the empty space on the floor, and Titus obeyed.

He slowly put down the books the Supreme Being had asked for, wondering why his god was bothering to read such basic books, and books written by the humans of this world no less!

『Introduction to Spell-Crafting』

『A Basic Primer of Elemental Magic and its Applications: Edition III』

『Dungeons and Dragons: Spellbook ©』

Titus had never seen the first two books before until the Head Butler Sebas brought back a collection of magical tomes from where he was stationed.

The last one however, was a book native to Nazarick he had read many times before in his desire to understand the magic of the Supreme Beings of Nazarick.

Despite his curiosity to better understand the power of his gods, he much preferred reading their sagas instead.

Titus knew of the Tale of Momonga, the Overlord of Death. It was written on the Ninth Volume of the Collection of Ashurbanipal, and it had become one of his favorite past-time to read all Forty One books about the Supreme Being.

He was also aware that Eclair Ecleir Eicler had been running back and forth in the library, taking only the Ninth Volume of the Collection of Ashurbanipal, and always ran away when Titus approached him.

Sometimes Titus wondered what was up with that penguin.

But he could not question the Supreme Beings' creation.

Titus looked back to the Overlord of Death who was sitting in the library focused on a book; it was as if he was trying to research something in particular.

Something about _Magical Research _and _Spell Crafting_.

Titus whole-heartedly believed that Ainz-sama was the most knowledgeable amongst all the Supreme Beings in terms of spells and wondered why the god of magic was bothering to learn about basic magic spells.

He shook his head; this was his bad habit. Questioning things, even the Supreme Beings' intentions, all out of sheer curiosity. It was definitely an issue that he had to look into later.

"Titus," his god called out, "Could you put this book back with the others Sebas had brought and bring me a new one?"

"Verily, My Lord," Titus hurried to fulfill his Lord's will.

Perhaps one day he would fix that bad habit of his. For now though, he had other things to do.

( ・ω)( ・)( )(・ )(ω・ )(・ω・)

Ainz put down the magical primer he was reading and took off the pair of translation glasses he was wearing.

Back in YGGDRASIL, he was known as the greatest magician in Ainz Ooal Gown as well as one of the best mages in the entire game.

This was not because he had any knowledge regarding the true nature of magic. After all, magic was a mere construct of imagination from the world where he had originally come from.

Rather, it was because he had memorized nearly every single spell YGGDRASIL had to offer. People would also be shocked when he revealed to them the extent of his obsession. For a man who had few connections to anything besides YGGDRASIL, the magic system had always been something that he had always found joy in learning about. Sometimes, he would even spend an entire day poring over the official compendium of spells in addition to user-submitted ones.

But now?

Now, magic was real. _Very _real.

Ainz had been ecstatic when he had casted a simple tier three spell,『Fireball』, for the first time while testing his spellcasting capabilities in the New World.

Back in the game, one had to manually select a spell from a list and then drag the cursor over to the area that the player wanted to target.

Here, however, it was like magic was an extension of himself that he could cast without even thinking.

The joy that flowed throughout his being when he felt the instinctive ability to cast his magic was indescribable.

His only regret was that he was limited to the around seven-hundred spells he had back in the game.

Then Tia leveled up.

Such an event should not have been possible. After all, level one-hundred had been the highest level a player could reach in YGGDRASIL.

Although such a revelation excited him, it was also a cause of great worry. If it was possible for one to endlessly level up in this world, then there could be people whose strength would far exceed his and Tia's.

In any case, leveling up was definitely their greatest priority now.

'_It's a good thing I asked Cocytus to train her. Hopefully, I'll be able to rest easy for a while..." _Ainz mused as he turned his attention back to the new book in his hands.

『Introduction to Spell-Crafting』

'_An interesting title for sure," _Ainz turned the book around in his hands as he thought about the possibilities.

If it were possible for him to "craft" his own spells as the book suggested, then who knew what the limit was.

The tantalizing prospect of exploring an unknown field, and magic at that, brought a surge of joy into Ainz's heart.

'_To think we can now create magic ourselves…! Ah, and there it goes again,' _Ainz pondered as his excitement was subdued by that ***able green aura.

His reverie was broken by Titus, "My Lord, I hath found a suitable tome for thy noble personage."

"Thank you Titus. Please put it over there," the skeletal Overlord pointed to an empty space at the table he was sitting, "I'll look over it later."

"My Lord needeth not shower thy servant with gratitude. Indeed, to serve a Supreme Being is the height of joy itself," Titus responded before bowing and leaving Ainz to his lone contemplation.

"Anyways," Ainz muttered to himself as he thumbed the pages to the Spell Crafting book open before putting on the magical spectacles once more, "I should probably read through this book first before forming any ridiculous expectations."

'_Fluder Paradyne, hm? If I recall correctly, one of my clients gave it to me as payment since he didn't have anything else… I guess this writer must be quite famous if that person thought that he could pay off an Adamantite adventurer with it.'_

**Introduction to Spell Crafting, A Primer By Fluder Paradyne**

_Spellcasting is the greatest form of power, wielded in the form of mana._

_Mana as a whole is an invisible energy that can alter the rules of nature as it gives the user the power to manipulate everything around him._

_As one of the most powerful mages of this era, I, Fluder Paradyne am writing this in the hopes that one of you reading this may surpass me one day._

_Keep in mind however, that spellcrafting is not a vocation that anyone can access. In order to apply the lessons in this book, the reader must be attuned to either the flow of mana around him or the flow within him._

_With that being said, I shall now impart the basics of spellcraft upon you. May fortune smile upon you in your delving of arcana._

**Chapter I: The Nature of Spells**

_It is impossible for one to begin creating their own spells without first having a grasp of what spellcraft means._

_Spellcraft is the art through which mages reinterpret and mold the world around them into a form of their choice. Naturally, a power such as this comes at a price; a resource that we will, for the sake of simplicity, call mana. _

_Now, although mana is the primary resource through which arcane mysteries are brought into the realm, it pales in comparison to__『__Knowledge__』__; any novice with a large enough mana pool can cast a simple__『__Magic Arrow__』__, but only a genius with the requisite __『__Knowledge__』__can cast powerful spells like__『__Fireball__』__._

_However, even an ample combination of the two is insufficient to peer even an inch into the abyss of the arcane. For that, one must understand the true nature and structure of a spell. Keep in mind that the structure varies from mage to mage, though the fundamental aspects will remain the same._

_First, one ought to write out their spell formula onto a sheet of paper before they attempt to cast it. This step is to ensure that there are no errors with the spells; an important part that has killed many a mage who thought they were too good to make mistakes._

_The most critical parts of a spell are these:_

_An aria or formula that will reference your stores of __『__Knowledge__』__._

_The most important aspects of the spell quantified in some way. For example, if a mage sought to create a variant of the __spell__『__Magic Arrow__』__, they would need to detail the speed, size, and piercing power of the projectile. Keep in mind however, that the greater these essential quantities, the more mana is required to cast these spells. _

_Formulas to inscribe more advanced properties onto the spell. These formulas, however, seem to be limited to only those with extensive experience in a particular field of magic. Many sages throughout history have tried and failed to share these formulas, only for their texts to come out as unintelligible nonsense to those outside their field of specialty._

_Upon reviewing that a spell is missing none of the above components, the caster has several avenues of application available to him. He can choose to inscribe the spell and its related formulas onto a suitable scroll for later use. He could also choose to memorize the formulas and tie them to somatic components in order to make it a conventional spell, or if he had enough gold, he would have the option of purchasing an uncharged wand and binding the newly-created spell to it._

_I will now impart upon the reader some of the core qualities of basic spells…_

Ainz put the book down, his hands trembling before the green aura washed away his shock.

The way Paradyne described the formation of spells sounded awfully similar to the programming he had to back at his old job on Earth. Despite having only an elementary school level of education, he had still learned a bit of coding, since nearly every office job at that point required at least some knowledge in the field.

Ainz shook his head to clear the unpleasant recollections and focused his mind on the recent revelation.

If spellcrafting were truly analogous to the work he had to do in his old world, then perhaps that shitty job of his had paid off after all.

Ainz grinned inside his head. The magic-nerd inside him was shaking with anticipation.

"Well, I should test all of this out first," Ainz cleared his nonexistent throat as he pulled out a pen and a nearby piece of scrap parchment.

"Umu, let's see...『Modified Fireball』should be a good starting point," Ainz muttered as he hurriedly wrote down his interpretation of the code for the makeshift spell.

_#include Fundamentals_

_#include Arcane_

_#include String_

_namespace Modified_Fireball {_

_void projectile(int projectileSpeed, int projectileSize, std::string element){_

_int explosionRadius = 10;_

_Arcane::Elemental(true, element);_

_Arcane::Explosive(true, explosionRadius);_

_Fundamentals::LaunchMagic(Arcane::CreateProjectile(true, projectileSpeed, projectileSize));_

_}_

_void main() {_

_int projectileSpeed = 10;_

_int projectileSize = 2;_

_std::string element = "fire";_

_projectile(projectileSpeed, projectileSize, element);_

_}_

_}_

The Overlord stared at his completed work.

'_Hah...No matter how I look at this, there's no way nonsense like this would work," _Ainz sighed as he balled up the parchment before freezing.

'_What if…? What if it works?' _he slowly unballed the paper.

"According to this book, I just need to memorize this code and say its name," Ainz scanned the crinkled parchment once again.

"『Modified— Ah, I should probably go outside to cast this…" the Overlord said as he narrowly avoided blowing up the Library.

"『Gate』."

Ainz walked through the violet rift and out to the plains surrounding Nazarick.

"This should be a good place to test. Then in that case,『Modified Fireball』!"

A ball of flame two meters in radius flickered into existence and launched itself from Ainz's palm towards where he was aiming. As it impacted against the grassy fields, it erupted into a fiery explosion around twenty meters in diameter, igniting the surrounding area, before Ainz panickedly put out the flames.

"It… it actually worked…" Ainz muttered in wonder.

He could actually create his own spells.

He could create _his own spells._

Suzuki Satoru broke out into bright laughter.

That was until the green aura bestowed its curse upon him once again.

"*** you, status effect!" Ainz shook his fist at the air.

( ・ω)( ・)( )(・ )(ω・ )(・ω・)

Tiamat looked down at her table, scribbling away at the paperwork in front of her.

Her quill moved in circles, doodling on the budget form while her eyes stared distantly into her paper.

Albedo looked over Ainz's shoulder and then looked at the paperwork in front of the Dragoness.

'_It seems that I have to redo that one…_' Albedo mused.

The doodle looked like a piece of pie with a strawberry on top. The crude details and messy linework made it look like the pie had seen better days, or so that was what Albedo could see from where she stood. She moved her eyes to the page where she could see what looked like a skull similar to the Supreme Being's, only that most of the lines covered the numbers on the report and skull looked as if it was in pain and gritting its teeth.

Her inquisitive yellow eyes shifted to the unfocused Supreme Being. As the quill kept moving, Albedo decided to interrupt.

"Is there anything bothering you, My Lady?"

"Hn…"

Her unspirited response caused Ainz to look up from his own set of paperwork and stare at her curiously.

It was very rare that his friend would be in such a somber mood after spending lunch time with the Floor Guardians. She was usually so chipper, humming happily while blabbing on about the cuteness of the twins or how innocent Pandora's Actor turned out to be.

But now, her usually ramrod straight back was hunched, an image that he was still unused to. Ainz used to speculate that even back on Earth, she had inserted a rod under her skin.

Ainz crumpled the unused paper and threw it so that it landed in front of her.

"Uwaa!" came the high pitched voice he was familiar with. "What was that for, Ainz?" she scowled and turned to look up at him.

"You're doodling on Albedo's precious report," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Ah," Tiamat looked up to see Albedo who was standing behind her. "I'm sorry, Albedo…"

Albedo smiled at her Lady, "It's nothing, My Lady. That one was fairly simple, in fact, please let me redo it."

"But…" Tiamat looked down at the already destroyed report, but Albedo swiftly took it away from her table and proceeded to make a new copy out of a freshly made piece of paper.

"Whatever it was, think about it later" Ainz took another piece of paper from his pile to work on.

"Hn…" she looked even more dejected by what he said, and proceeded to doodle yet again on another empty sheet of paper.

Ainz sighed.

"Albedo," Ainz ordered while making a subtle gesture asking her to leave them alone for a bit. The succubus straightened her back and quietly slipped out of the office.

Once the door had been gently shut, Ainz looked up from his paperwork to properly look at the Dragoness. "Stop sulking."

"Am not, and I can sulk if I want to," she sat straighter, but her eyes didn't look away from the quill she was holding.

"Never said you couldn't. Although, I _am_ curious with what has been bothering you."

Tiamat couldn't help it; she sighed and shook her head, stopping whatever it was she was doing as she looked up at Ainz. Once he knew she was finally looking straight at him properly, he returned his focus back to the paperwork at hand.

"I was thinking of something…" she said offhandedly as she watched for his reaction.

"Bad idea," he muttered.

Tiamat just stared at him in annoyance, shoving the paperwork away from her, but silently agreed at his reply. Her ideas were never the best.

"And?" he continued after a moment of silence.

"I've been a bad friend," she said in a small voice.

At the outrageous statement, Ainz put down his paper and quill before leaning back in his chair.

"Since we've arrived in the New World, I've been playing around all by myself, feeling happy about the entire situation, and just assumed that you felt the same way. But I realized something today," she added and watched as his head quickly shot up.

His eyes flared as if to tell her to continue.

"I've just realized that it wasn't just me that was affected by this change, but you too. It never crossed my mind that you might be feeling shocked with how you look. It must've been scary to see that your body had suddenly changed so drastically."

"About that…"

"I should've been more sensitive about the changes you're experiencing. It's not everyday that you get isekai-ed into a new world. You've been taking care of me from the beginning so I'm going to return the favor."

He would've blinked if he could.

"It must have been shocking when you saw your body in the mirror for the first time…" she trailed off.

"Actually, I didn't get shocked," he corrected her. "Ever since we've arrived in the New World, I have been unable to feel much emotion. I presumed it was from the emotional suppression that comes with being an Undead. So I didn't feel anything like what you've mentioned."

"What?"

"You heard me," Ainz returned to his paperwork, "All Undead in YGGDRASIL are immune to mental effects. I believe that my emotions would well up to the point that they could be considered _status effects_."

Tiamat casted her eyes downwards, "You should have told me…" she whined, and Ainz knew immediately what she was thinking.

"Why would I? It hasn't obstructed me in any way. Moreover with this skill, I don't get emotional as much, causing me to be able to think a lot clearer than usual. So it does have its perks."

It took a few seconds for Tiamat to register his words.

"Does this mean you don't feel joy?"

"To an extent."

"Sadness?"

"Hm, I haven't experienced any profound sadness since we've arrived."

"Anger?"

Ainz eyes trailed away from his paperwork, remembering when his emotional block had failed to contain the feeling of anger when Tiamat almost died because she didn't discuss her plans with him.

"To an extent…" he trailed off.

"Then," she stared at him, "Are you happy?"

Ainz lowered his head slightly in introspection and thought back to everything that had occurred in the past months: from their miraculous migration to the New World, to their ridiculous bet, and even the quiet hours they spent doing paperwork together.

What a silly question.

He raised his head again, "I see no reason why I shouldn't be."

Ainz felt mildly confused. He hadn't acted particularly strange or anything had he? In that case, why was she suddenly so concerned about him?

"Why are you so curious about my emotional state?"

"Obviously, it's because I care about you, you bonehead," Tia rolled her eyes.

"Me?"

Back when the guild was still active, it was always him that took care of his guild members, listened to their troubles, and cleared up conflicts between them. Of course, that wasn't to say that his friends didn't look out for him, but he was unused to people expressing their care in such a blatant manner.

Tiamat frowned at his reply.

"Don't worry about me," he said, putting down his paperwork, unable to focus on the documents any longer. "Just worry about yourself."

"Soooo, you didn't feel shocked _at all _when you saw that you've become a walking, living, skeleton?"

"No," he snorted, "As I said, you don't have to worry about me, _Ann_," he said with a soft undertone.

"If you say so…" she twitched her nose, feeling a bit sad that Ainz was so nonchalant about the whole situation, but she believed him either way. She knew that if something happened, he would always confide in her.

"Can I ask another question?"

"No," he replied sarcastically.

"You're not being very nice," she complained, but the humor shining through her words showed that she wasn't offended.

"Of course not, if you want nice, then don't ask an Overlord with a minus five hundred karma rating," he replied with the same dry humor.

Tiamat snorted. "Still roleplaying even though you've become the real deal?"

"That just means I'm in character," Ainz countered.

His friend just sighed and leaned back in her chair as she looked up at the ceiling.

The two sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Tiamat spoke out again.

"Which one are you," she muttered, her soft voice filling the quiet room. "Suzuki Satoru or Momonga of Ainz Ooal Gown?"

He opened his mouth to respond and was surprised when he found himself hesitating.

The Dumb Dragon had unexpectedly asked him a very good question.

With his emotional suppression, could he even be considered human anymore? Was Suzuki Satoru someone that only existed back in that hellhole of a planet, and Momonga the one that existed in the world of YGGDRASIL? If that were the case, was he still really himself?

The only thing that mattered to Suzuki Satoru were his friends. Nothing more, nothing less.

And he knew for certain that fact had not changed.

Before he could voice his response, Tiamat continued.

"You see, sometimes I'm vaguely aware that this world is different from ours. Not just this," she waved her hands at the office around them, "But our physical bodies as well. I can hear and smell things better than normal, my eyes can see further, and the craziest out of them all is that I can sprout wings from my back and fly into the sky." she paused for a moment before continuing with a softer tone.

"Some days I wondered if I'd gone insane; was this world something out of my imagination? Was it perhaps just a dream? But as the days went by, I was convinced that this is now our reality."

Ainz nodded, agreeing with her. "I think of the same things as well."

"You do?" she asked, surprise evident in her voice.

As if a light bulb had suddenly turned on inside his head, Ainz quickly realized why she had asked this question.

"Of course. As you said, I am a walking, living, skeleton. On certain days I wondered if this was real, if I am truly me. But that doesn't matter."

"Why?"

"At our core, we are still the same people with the same values. Although the way we express our feelings may have changed or even if our appearances have warped to this degree, we still love and treasure the same things," Ainz stared at Tiamat. "As long as your feelings don't change, it doesn't matter right?"

Tiamat looked at him with a dumbfounded expression.

She never thought of it that way.

Ever since she had arrived in the New World, she realized that her body is not her own. It was as if she was taking over someone else's body, especially since she often heard praises regarding her new appearance, all while knowing that the real her would never fulfill those expectations.

But he had told her it didn't matter.

As long as the inside was still her, he couldn't care less.

Unknown to her, a huge burden had been lifted off her shoulders. She felt a little more at ease and smiled in relief.

"You're right," she grinned. "I was overthinking things."

Ainz scoffed, "Of course you were. You're a woman. A mythical creature with complex feelings that could never be solved."

Tiamat gasped, pretending to be offended, "Excuse me, did you just assume my gender? It's the twenty-second century and you're still like this? Tsk tsk."

If Ainz could grin, he would have.

"But we're no longer on that planet anymore, so your argument is invalid."

"Ah, you have a point there," she snickered at their banter.

"Since we've solved your problem, come help me solve mine. I've been stuck here finishing these documents from a while ago."

Tiamat sank back into her chair and smiled.

'_How could a skeleton be wiser than a dragon?_' she asked herself.

Must be the WIS bonuses from his magic caster classes.

But for some odd reason, she didn't think that was the case. She knew that Suzuki had always been smart for his age. Sometimes, it annoyed the hell out of her because she wished she had at least a fraction of his brain.

"Give it to me," she said, offering her hand to him as he gave away the problematic paperwork for her to solve.

* * *

**Canon Omake: Thief in Nazarick**

* * *

Titus had noticed something odd.

It seemed that Eclair Ecleir Eicler had been visiting the library back and forth, entering through the door in silence, which was very different from his usual self.

The human-animal skeleton had been watching the penguin from afar the past couple of days, and it seemed that he always stopped at a very specific collection of books. Every time the penguin visited, he would always drag a chair over to climb up on in order to take the book out.

Titus was familiar with that book: **The Collection of Ashurbanipal, Volume IX, Momonga: the Overlord of Death.**

One thought had been bothering him.

Every denizen of Nazarick knew of Eclair's ambition: taking over Nazarick one day through his power of cleaning. But now Titus feared that Eclair was trying to topple the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown himself.

What if Eclair had decided to act on his ambition and try to find the Supreme Being's weakness? Such an act was uncalled for.

Titus stopped himself.

There was no way that Eclair who was so obsessed with making Nazarick as clean as possible would have the time to think about such a grand plan.

Moreover, this was Eclair he was suspecting. Even though he was the creation of a Supreme Being, he was too much of a dolt to be able to create such a strategy.

'_No one whatsoever possesses the required time for such trifles,' _Titus thought to himself.

But perhaps he shall bring these worries to the Head Maid herself.

* * *

"Eclair, woof."

The penguin had been called over by Pestonya Shortcake Wanko to her office on the Ninth Floor. The cream colored walls and landscape paintings seem to close in on him as he stood before the Head Maid.

"What is it Pestonya, I need to clean the toilet bowl so that people may lick it after I clean it," he boasted.

"Eclair, I'm really disappointed, woof."

"What do you mean?"

"I never thought that the assistant butler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick would do something like this, woof."

"Ha? Please tell me of what I did wrong. Did I scrub the toilet bowl so hard that parts of it scraped off?"

"I know you were created this way by the Supreme Being, but please don't steal. How shameful, woof."

Eclair looked at Pestonya with wide eyes.

"Stealing, me?"

"Yes, woof."

"Impossible! This is slander of the highest degree! I am Eclair Ecleir Eicler, the assistant butler of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, the one who will sit upon its throne one hundred thousand years from now! How could you accuse me of such a degrading accusation?!"

Eclair could see the pity in Pestonya's eyes.

"Give up Eclair, Titus saw everything, woof."

"What insolence! I am innocent!"

"If you don't confess now, I am afraid I will have to bring this case to the Pleiades, woof."

For an organization as large as Nazarick, a proper chain of command was essential. Since the great leader of Nazarick could not look over every action from every personnel, a system had been set up to prevent the Supreme Being from being flooded with work

Pestonya was the one responsible for all the Homunculi maids and was in charge of every maids' schedule. After that came the next group in command, those who every maid looked up to.

The Pleiades, Nazarick's last line of defence who also worked as field agents, yet held many responsibilities in The Great Tomb. They were responsible for Pestonya's actions.

Above them was Sebas, who was responsible for Pleiades along with Yuri Alpha, the eldest sister, both of them making sure everything was done according to what was directed to them.

At the same level as Sebas were the Floor Guardians, the most exalted creations of the Supreme Beings who had the sacred duty of defending Nazarick from the outsiders who would see it despoiled.

And to command all the Guardians was Albedo, the Overseer of Nazarick the one responsible for all the Floor Guardians, including Sebas. At the top, existed the Supreme Beings, holy entities that resided at a pinnacle the rest of them could never hope to even glimpse.

Despite the existence of positions even higher than hers, to be directed to even Pestonya for reprimanding was a great dishonor.

"How could you, Pestonya?! How many times do I have to say to you that I am innocent!"

"Then what were you doing sneaking books out of the library without permission yesterday? Woof," Pestonya asked calmly.

"Books? I can't read for crying out loud! What use are books to me to sit on the Throne of Nazarick?!"

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Pandora's Actor sat sprawled across the sofa with his stomach down while his elbows supported his body as he leisurely flipped the page of a certain book.

"Aha!" he said excitedly. "So that's how my great Vater became the glorious ruler of Nazarick!"

Between his hands was the book he took from the library this afternoon.

His black eyes absorbed all the information at a glance, burning them forever in his memory while he flipped another page.

He had to quickly return it before his Vater knew that he had left the treasury for a few minutes.

Perhaps he should use another disguise to borrow books from the Library later on.

He had never imagined that someone so inconspicuous would be so slow.

* * *

**A/N: Short, but satisfying! Btw, "No man has time for such trifles" → "Ain't nobody got time for that!"**

**Hackslashbash: Big shoutout to LogicLetter for being a massive help on the magic code!**

**Spells follow a sort of code language syntax.**

**All spells start with the implication that the user will feed mana into the spell until they run out.**

**The spells they are able to craft are limited by the amount of knowledge they have**

**In other words, like programming libraries.**

**In order to increase their amount of knowledge/access to certain commands and branches of magic, they need to level up in the relevant classes**

**In any case, the only requisite for a spell to work properly would be if the crafter ascribed the correct "meaning" to it. "Meaning" is different for everyone, but it's important that the spell works in the mind of the creator.**

**Furthermore, it isn't possible to just make a spell with a 10000000 meter explosion radius because mana consumption rises as the basic attributes of the spell—Speed, duration, range—increase.**

**Chapter 23- 25 are now up on Discord! ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range**r**efreshing **d**rink** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	23. CHAPTER 23: Shadows in the Dark

**A/N: Thank you Cherry Atlanta for the beautiful fan-art!**

**Thank you Razel Treasure, Red Wolf, Mykah, and I AM STRING CUTTER for betaing this chapter!**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal**

**Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth**

**Chapter V: Ascension**

Another monster fallen.

Another field of ruin cleared of aberrations.

The Dragon wiped her brow. Ever since she had stood her ground against the Hunters, the humans had forced her into hiding.

Her only homes were places where no other sane being would ever consider living. Even so, she persevered and even thrived in the face of the harshest adversity.

The Dragon did not think of her hardship though.

She thought only of her fallen friend and the cold injustice of the world.

And so she fought. She fought in caves of perilous demons, on hills of raging flames, through swirling tempests, and the darkest depths of the abyss.

She fought with humans who had not the heart to drive her away, she fought with monsters whose visages would scald the eyes, and she fought with those who cared for nothing but treasure.

She fought until her blood turned to ice in her veins: life-giving fluid chilled into unmoving sludge.

By the skin of her teeth, she emerged triumphant in an ocean of corpses, each body a step for her evolution.

A day, a month, or maybe even a year went by as the Dragoness pushed on in her quest for strength. Perhaps she would have been satisfied with remaining weak in a different life, but in this world, there was no room for weakness.

She swore that she wouldn't lose to the cruelty of Man ever again.

One day, her arduous efforts finally bore fruit.

After vanquishing countless monstrosities that existed only in whispered myths, she finally reached a pinnacle many could only dream of.

A god on par with the Devourer of Worlds.

* * *

**Chapter 23: Shadows in the Dark**

* * *

Coins.

A currency that was accumulated and used to make purchases for items or services.

Four primary metals were utilized as the monetary standard and set in increasing values: Copper, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

Thirteen copper coins were worth one silver coin.

A hundred silver coins were worth one gold coin.

Ten gold coins were worth one platinum coin.

In addition to that, there existed financial institutions supported by the government. For example, the Imperial Bank located in the Baharuth Empire used metallic plates as an ancient form of a cheque.

Each metallic plate was engraved with the owner's signature to legitimize the metallic plate as their own as well as signifying that they were the buyer.

The seller would receive them, and then the bank would settle this payment for the seller.

This was because during a big transaction, it was a hassle to bring heavy gold coins as payment. Therefore, collecting payment at the bank, both parties undergo less troubles while also having a guarantee that their money would not be stolen.

However, most people did not handle sums of money large enough to warrant the use of the metal plates.

For a commoner, three gold coins could feed their family for a month.

For adventurers, a few hundred gold coins was the height of richness and glamor.

For merchants and nobles alike, platinum coins were used strictly for business transactions.

But what about _royalty_?

If a noble could afford a few platinum coins, surely kings would have ten times, if not a hundred times the amount compared to nobles.

No.

For Royalty, there existed a currency higher than platinum coins.

And those were _gems_.

Gems were much more difficult to grade considering that there were a lot of factors that could determine a gem's price.

First were their type: ruby, sapphire, emerald, tsavorite, demantoid garnet, tanzanite, spinel, and alexandrite were commanding the market at a premium price due to their superior characteristics and rarity. Quartz, however, was much more abundant resulting in lower prices.

However, the characteristics of the specific gemstone also had a major effect on the price. Low quality sapphires were quite inexpensive in comparison to purer ones. A gem with vivid, pure and intense colors would usually be worth many times more than those with duller or diluted colors.

Weight was another important factor. Of course, for some gemstones such as quartz, the price per carat was fairly constant as the weight of the stone increased. But in the case of many rare gems, price increased in a non-linear way as the weight increased.

Finally, the quality of the gems.

Since gems were also used as magical foci, they were constantly in high demand, making even quartz pricey to procure. Although lower quality gems could only be used for less-effective spells, the fact they were able to channel mana made gems extremely popular among magic-users.

And now these gems were being threatened.

To the south of E-Rantel was a small range of Mountains where the gem mines were located. The vast majority of these mines were owned by Marquis Blumrush.

Marquis Blumrush, one of the richest men in the Kingdom thanks to the vast amount of valuable mines he had on his fief. In addition to his gold and mythril mines, he also owned three highly profitable gem mines.

Out of the three mines, there was one that was...quite problematic.

Three weeks ago, the miners had heard the sound of moaning coming out of the caves.

One week ago, some of the miners had disappeared.

Three days ago, they had finally found the bodies.

However, after some investigation, they did not find the cause of death.

They believe that this was the work of a mystical being.

Eventually, they called it the Spirit Mist in hushed whispers.

Grown men recalled stories from their childhood of monsters that lurked in the shadows. Before, the stories were just that, mere tales meant to frighten children into compliance.

But now? Now, the terrors from childhood had become very, very real.

After more bodies and continuous protesting, the miners finally persuaded Blumrush to address the problem. Hence, why Tiamat was now here.

She looked down as Pentakrisis flapped his wings, trying to land on the uneven ground filled with humans flocking about.

As soon as the humans below felt the unnatural gust of wind, they looked up and were shocked to see a Dragon looming just above them. In accordance to common sense, they immediately began running away..

Once Pentakrisis saw that the land was now clear, he descended unto the ground and lowered his head.

A black haired beauty with glasses jumped down from the dragon, and reached out her hand to help someone else get off the Dragon.

The people hesitantly looked over, wondering who she was reaching out for, but when they took another peek at the Dragon in front of them, they immediately recognized it.

There was only one Dragon who was as majestic as the one towering above them.

White scales decorated his body, blinding their eyes as the sunlight reflected off of it, and its horns that seemed to be forged out of pure gold.

They were immediately torn away from their pondering when a hand reached out to the proffered aid, accepting her help without too much complication as the black haired girl helped her down from the Dragon.

The Silver Priestess.

"Is this really the place?" she asked.

Her voice was as beautiful as her appearance, and they could only stare in awe.

They had never seen her in person before.

As the rumors said, she had silver hair despite being young, and amethyst eyes that shone clearer than any gem they'd mined before. She clutched an adamantite staff in her hand and an adamantite plate rested on her hips.

"Yes," the black haired beauty replied. "A gem mine located south of E-Rantel. This must be it, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat sighed, "Again with the _sama_."

A voice sounded from her right, "Thank you for coming, Adventurers-sama."

When Tiamat looked, it seemed that a man of high stature was greeting them.

His hands were fully loaded with jewelry, and his body was littered with accessories filled with varying gems. The clothes he wore seemed to be of a high quality as well: patterned silk of varying colors.

Blumrush had prepared such a fantastic outfit a few weeks in advance before he requested for the Silver Priestess to come visit his mines. He knew he needed to dress his best to at least be on par with the woman that was standing in front of him, because she had what he didn't.

His eyes trailed to the Dragon behind her.

Power. Power great enough to cause nations to quake in their boots.

But Tiamat was thinking the opposite.

'_He looks like a decked out peacock…'_

"Ah, you must be Blumrush-san," Tiamat bowed, followed by Yuri. "I received your quest from the Adventurer's guild."

"I am aware," he said with a smile. "I am very happy that you could come ahead of schedule, and this is…?"

"This is Lily, my apprentice."

The man looked at the golden plate that rested on Yuri's neck.

"A gold-ranked adventurer?" he asked disapprovingly.

"Yes, I hope you don't mind. I am aware of the guild's policy that an adventurer team needs to be members of the same rank. However, you can rest assured, she's only here to tag along. I will deal with your quest personally."

"I see, that is fine. Shall we?"

"Of course," Tiamat said with a smile.

Pentakrisis flew away and Yuri followed behind her.

As they walked through rough and rocky terrain, before them they saw a somewhat lavish building that didn't look anything like an office.

Tiamat noticed that the building was packed with guards who had different uniforms than the guards from E-Rantel.

Their imposing all-black uniforms made them look more like assassins than guards. Tiamat squinted and noticed that the black outfits gave out a dull metallic sheen.

"Impressive isn't it? I outfit my entire guard in full Mythril, after all, who knows what sorts of ruffians would come after my treasures," the Marquis boasted, noticing Tiamat inspecting the guards. "I even had the armor dyed black since blue is such a prissy color for my amazing guards."

'_Aren't Mythril plates supposed to be super expensive? Also, did he seriously pay money to dye his guards' armor?'_

Tiamat ignored the Marquis's preening and looked away to observe her surroundings more.

It appeared that they had entered some sort of museum, where the gems were displayed within beautifully outfitted glass showcases. Furthermore, it was not just one gem, but an entire room full of stones of all shapes and colors.

The Dragon in her was squirming in delight.

"They're really beautiful," she unknowingly muttered out loud.

The man turned around and smiled at her. "I agree. Afterall, these are the gems that _cannot _be used as currency since they could ruin the price of the market."

"Gems are used as currency?"

"Yes, Hannah-sama. But only _certain people_ can afford such luxuries."

Tiamat looked at him weirdly, but smiled nonetheless, "I see."

The tone he had used was distressingly similar to one of the clients she had back on earth. They had talked down to her as if she wasn't worthy of it.

Yuri picked up on the arrogance in the Marquis's voice, and her glasses glinted in fury. But Tiamat raised a single finger to her mouth, pleading for her to hold her peace.

Suddenly, Tiamat caught the shine of a particularly large ruby from the corner of her eye. The stone glinted as if it was calling out to her. Tiamat shook her head and turned her focus back on the man in front of her who was walking away once again.

She cleared her throat. "So, I heard from the guild that there's a problem with one of your mines? What happened that you feel the need to call an Adamantite adventurer?"

The man stayed quiet, as if he was trying his hardest to formulate his words.

"My miners believed that we have disturbed some sort of spirit protecting the mines."

"What kind of spirit?"

"We don't know yet, but we believe the spirit is some sort of an evil entity…"

Tiamat widened her eyes. "Like a demon, you mean?"

"Yes, you see, some of our miners were found dead five days ago."

The Dragoness thought back to the paperwork she did for Nazarick, and remembered nothing that said anything about taking over a gem mine. She and Ainz believed that it would be much safer to obtain revenue through adventuring since Nazarick was already designed to be self-sustaining.

Ever since Ainz had introduced a Dryad to the Sixth Floor, they did not even have to spend even a quarter of the money they earned from adventuring for food expenses.

"My condolences…"

"It's fine they were mere commoners anyway. Miners are easy to find. However, because of this blasted Spirit, no one wants to work here!"

Tiamat stayed silent at his statement.

Whenever people talked to her in her adventuring persona, she always avoided the topics of religion and politics. As an Adamantite adventurer, she had seen the differences in the standard of living. It wouldn't be strange if she didn't find it unreasonable.

She felt disappointed because if her client was indeed a noble, he had neglected his job, as the nobles were supposed to protect the people, not _use _them.

Tiamat could empathize with the commoners a little bit, since she was one herself. Back on Earth, the poor became poorer while the rich swam in ever growing piles of wealth.

The Kingdom was built on the backs of the poor, both here and on Earth.

But at the moment there was nothing she could do about it.

Even if she could, the guild had already established a very clear rule that adventurers couldn't get involved in politics.

The man led her through a backdoor leading into the mines. It seemed that the only way to get to the mines was to pass through the heavily guarded museum.

The mine was smaller than what she had initially thought.

'_Well, I guess it would be hard to dig a really big hole…'_

As she walked, she saw miners performing back-breaking labor, their faces caked in dirt. She even saw children helping out their parents as they descended into the mine.

The pit was cramped, about as little as a meter or even less in width, and went straight underground.

"Why do you make the mines like that?" she mumbled curiously. "Aren't mines supposed to have big openings where carts can go through?"

"Carts? That's the first time I've heard of it."

"Yes, what would happen when you finish collecting all the gems? Aren't they heavy?"

"I see what you mean. But no, this is just the underground roadways to the mines. It goes straight down like so, see?"

The man brought her closer to what looked like a well opening that extended miles underground. She saw one of the adults lowering the other using a pulley and as the man descended into the pit, she could only see the end of the rope as the rest was engulfed in total darkness.

"At the bottom, the workers will have to walk quite a distance to the caves. Even though the pit head may seem small, the underground roadways are far larger than this."

"Is that so…"

"When they complete their task, they will return to the pit head and get pulled once again to the top, carrying bags of gems with them."

"You must have a lot of confidence in your security system if you trust the miners to bring the bags straight to you."

The man laughs. "Not really, Hannah-sama. Before they go home for the day, we usually body check them to see if they're smuggling anything. Several cases have occurred where we found out that some ruffian had stolen a few gems."

"So that's why you have so many guards."

"You catch on quickly, Hannah-sama. As expected of an Adamantite adventurer." Tiamat could have sworn that she saw the man roll his eyes.

"Then what happens to them when they get caught stealing?"

He grinned. "Simple, we cut off their hands and their families then we kick them out of here."

Tiamat turned her head to look the man in the face.

"Even the ones who are innocent?"

"Each and everyone of their family Hannah-sama, guilty or not."

The Dragoness couldn't hide the surprise that was evidently written on her face.

"It might be cruel to you, but they learn quicker if we impose harsh punishments upon them. With that being said, shall we continue, Hannah-sama?" he turned his back on her and strolled away once again.

Tiamat glanced back at the miners.

In the middle of a sweltering hot day, they were grinding themselves to dust in that cramped hole. It was hot to the point that the workers had taken off most of their clothing as they slaved away.

She could see clearly see their ribs while the guards outside and the man who had just led her seemed well fed.

As she took a brief glance into one of the mines, she could see that the hole was completely devoid of light. Taking a quick look around her, she stuck her head in one of the pits.

A wave of heat immediately engulfed her as her resistances kicked in, defending against the minor heat damage. From the depths, she heard a chorus of coughs.

The children were tirelessly working their underdeveloped bodies.

She could see it, working in a land belonging to another person, everyday with the same pattern, and barely any rest. They looked hurt and some of them were even on the verge of keeling over.

They looked as if they were _disposable_.

"How cruel," she whispered. Even the dragon in her could no longer remain indifferent to the plight of inferior beings.

These people were beaten down remorselessly by their employers.

"Hannah-sama, should I go back to the guild to refuse the quest?" Yuri asked, worry laced in every word, but her face betrayed nothing of what she had just said.

Tiamat silently shook her head and continued walking forward.

There was nothing she could do here.

Not now. Not when it would surely cause even more problems for her friend.

'_I'm sorry,' _she silently turned back to follow the Marquis.

After a few minutes of walking, Tiamat noticed that the surroundings got quieter and quieter with every meter away from the main building.

They finally stopped at an empty pithole, devoid of any living being.

"We're finally here."

"So this is the problematic one?"

"Yes."

"Anything I should be aware of before heading in?"

"None, Hannah-sama. I am sure you already understand what the quest entails."

"Purification, right?"

The man nodded in satisfaction. "Exactly."

"Then, Lily will stand guard outside. I'll be going inside."

"Hannah-sama," Yuri voiced her disagreement.

Tiamat smiled at Yuri, "It's alright, Lily. I'll return quickly."

With that, she jumped into the hole.

The man jumped in surprise as he scrambled forward to make sure that the Priestess was going to drop safely. He had never expected her to directly jump into the pit of darkness.

"Is she going to be alright all by herself?" he asked.

Yuri closed her eyes and sighed, refusing to answer the man next to her.

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

As Tiamat had expected, there wasn't a single source of light inside the cave. Thankfully, most heteromorphs in YGGDRASIL had darkvision, dragons included.

The only thing that greeted her upon her landing was the stretching darkness within the long tunnel.

She took a deep breath in.

'_Alright, I got this! This'll just be an easy subjugation quest Tia! You can do it!'_

After she walked for what seemed like an eternity, she finally came upon a source of light. It flickered eerily as she approached it.

Tiamat gulped.

'_A Spirit, he said…_'

Steeling her resolve, she finally reached out for the light, when something suddenly began squiggling on her right leg.

"WHAT THE ACTUAL FFFF!"

"Hannah-sama!" Yuri screamed out from above. "Are you alright?"

Tiamat couldn't take another step; her knees were buckling and she went down on her knees with a plop. She looked at where she stood before, only to realize that the _something _was actually a small rat.

"I-It's fine, a rat scared me that's all," she said, trying to calm Yuri down, as the rat ran away deeper into the mine.

Tiamat took a deep breath.

'_It's fine, it's fine! Everything is fine~'_ she tried to reassure herself.

She couldn't help it. Darkness just wasn't something she could deal with, despite her darkvision. Instead of walking around in total blindness, her vision was a slightly brighter version of those old horror games that some shut-ins still played back on Earth. The reminder of ancient Earth horror did nothing to sooth her nerves.

Intellectually, she knew that it was just the absence of light, but in her mind, it was much more than that.

Darkness represented a blank world where there was no light, no way, no sight, no familiar faces, no contact, no physical appearance, nobody around you, nothing at all.

Everything was just black and blank.

And that was why she feared it. Anything that chose to live in such conditions would be fearsome indeed.

Slowly standing back up on her feet, she braced herself as she slowly descended into the cave.

'_This is nothing, you've seen scarier things.'_

Once she was sure that neither Yuri nor the client could hear her from the pithole, she formed a few embers of golden flame on her palm and let them float around her to light up the way.

She noticed that there were a few deep vertical shafts that no longer had any safety rails.

'_Odd.'_

They were not overly large or complex, but Tiamat felt a strong sense of unease when she looked at them.

After almost half an hour of walking, she finally noticed some pickaxes that had been cast away, left on the ground to rust. The walls surrounding her twinkled, reflecting the flames she was carrying with her.

Upon closer inspection, she found out that the sparkles were raw, unprocessed gems.

"So this is what they look like…"

They looked like kohakutous; edible crystal jelly made out of sugar and food coloring. But she couldn't deny that even unprocessed, the gems were still beautiful.

And they were scattered everywhere on the cave walls, gleaming under her fire, as if to beckon her to harvest them.

'_What a let down…'_

The man had bragged as if he owned the world, while in reality all he had were small gems the size of fingernails fit only for miniscule baubles.

She thought the mines would at least have a larger supply, especially after he had told her that they were used as currency.

Yet it looked like the gem mine was actually depleting.

All that remained here were gems smaller than water droplets, showering the cave with refracted light.

Although it was indeed beautiful, she didn't think they could be compared to the ones on display she had seen earlier.

Tiamat took a quick glance at the small gems, and then quickly looked around to see if anyone was there and carefully picked out a tiny bit of blue from the wall with her nails, wiping it clean from the debris with her fingers.

Tiamat admired the sapphire the size of a water droplet as she held it up to the light of the golden embers; sky-blue light lit up the cave as the light of the embers was refracted by the tiny gemstone.

Tiamat couldn't believe that a raw gemstone could be so beautiful.

Surely no one would notice if she took a stone this small?

All of a sudden, she had heard a low groan.

She turned her head to peek deeper into the caves, turning her attention away from the gem in her grip, unconsciously putting it in her inventory.

The sound stopped.

'_Okay, that definitely wasn't just my imagination. Was it?'_

She slowly approached the sound, only to hear the same groan, followed by what sounded like chanting from far below the cave.

Tiamat caught herself as she opened her mouth to ask who was there. Anyone living in this place was certainly not sane, and alerting her presence to them could turn nasty.

The sound suddenly stopped.

Tiamat sent a small globule of fire deeper into the cave, only to find nothing but rocks and another pile of abandoned pickaxes and shovels.

She walked deeper and deeper into the cave and a few faint sounds filtered into her hearing, combining to form a message that seemed to be to no one in particular.

After a while, she wondered if she was just imagining that she heard the words.

Then out of nowhere, she heard a loud wail.

"_OOooOOOOOooOOOO!"_

"_『__Fire Bolt__』__!" _

A gout of condensed fire lit the dark pathway before her, the furious hiss of the flames drowning out the cursed sound.

The familiar _beep_ sound of『Message』greeted her.

[My Lady, I heard your scream, is everything alright?]

At the same time, through her keen ears, she heard the sound of footsteps coming closer to where she was standing.

Human footsteps.

Tiamat quickly pulled out a 『Conceal Self』 scroll from her inventory and activated it, turning off the flames at the same time, and the darkness greeted her once again.

[My Lady?]

The sounds of footsteps grew closer, and the slow walk turned into a sprint. From the sounds of footsteps alone, it seemed that three people were coming her way.

Tiamat briefly unfurled her wings. The width of the cave was way too cramped, but thankfully it was tall enough that she could easily fly up to the stactalites without being caught. Moreover, 『Conceal Self』only prevented people from seeing her. If they ran into her, it would be bothersome.

[I'm fine Yuri, sorry about that. I gotta go now. I think I found something]

With that, she ended the『Message』.

She held her breath as she waited for the newcomers to leave when a sudden pulse of light from the other end of the cave stunned her, almost causing her to lose her grip on the stalactites.

Three men were walking towards where she was, carrying lanterns shining with unnaturally bright light in their hands.

They wore brown cloaks that covered their whole body with a hood that covered their faces. The steady shine of the lanterns didn't help her anxiety either.

"Did you see anything?" the last one to arrive asked the man in front.

"I didn't see anything."

He clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Must be the miners, fucking hell. Let's quickly return."

"What kind of miner scorches cave walls? I swore those marks weren't there before…" another man muttered.

"Pffft! What did you think came down here? A Dragon?" the first man laughed uproariously. "Anyways, let's head back now."

"Yes!" the other two replied in unison.

Their voices echoed through the cave.

"Don't be so loud, idiots!" the first man hissed.

With that they slowly walked away, unaware that someone was following from behind.

The path they took was unconventional to say the least, but it turned out that there was another tunnel to the side of the gem mines

As Tiamat followed the men through the twisting passage, she quickly turned on 『Automatic Mapping』. There was no way she was going to memorize the way back.

A few minutes passed before they finally arrived to what appeared to be an underground cavern filled with more cloaked people.

The place was barely lit by torches hanging around the edge of the walls, lighting just the bare minimum necessary for human eyes to see.

But not for her.

Even with the dim lighting she could clearly see what was in front of her.

There were about twelve humans circling what looked like a modified YGGDRASIL magic circle carved on the ground, waiting to be filled with something.

Statues of weird looking creatures stood around the circle. The statues all had pointed tails and horns with scale like bodies; somehow they looked like the lesser knock-off versions of the Lords of the Seven Deadly Sins.

"Did you find something?" one man asked, wearing a much more elaborate cloak compared to the others.

While the rest of them wore plain brown cloaks, the one speaking was the only one who wore a white cloak decorated with an embroidered skull on his back.

"Nothing, it must have come from the outside, High Disciple-sama."

The man clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Fuck! The one who made this cave is a fool," he seethed. "Let's finish this ritual quickly. We don't have much time."

The rest of his followers nodded.

One of them walked towards the edge of the circular cave where a small cage resided.

Small whimpers could be heard from the inside.

The man proceeded to open up the cage and dragged someone out by the hair.

A small child no older than twelve.

"Get her to the center," the man with the white cloak ordered.

Tiamat scrunched up her nose when the man grabbed her, the stench of human musk and filth filled the room.

The child was clutching the hand that was grasping her hair, scrambling to get away, but she was too weak to do anything.

She desperately clawed at the hand, begging for even the smallest release from the pain assaulting her scalp.

"Please, please, let me go," she whispered, her face was soaked with tears.

The man didn't even bother to pay attention to her as he continued dragging her to the middle of the ritual circle where she fell with a thump.

The man with the white cloak started whispering in a bizarre language, and as his followers joined in, the whispers grew louder.

Their voices made the girl slightly jolt in anxiety, and she looked back at the cage, desiring to escape the madness around her.

Taking a deep breath in, the Head Disciple brought forth words that he seemed to know far too well; a macabre lullaby doused in the blood of innocents.

Out of nowhere, he grabbed what looked like a bone knife and plunged it deep into the girl.

The screech of pain echoed as Tiamat could only stare in shock at the scene below her.

The girl's body slowly hit the ground, clutching for dear life as the man, the _murderer_, put a palm on her mouth, blocking every sound that escaped from her dying lips.

"Onee-san!" another scream from the cage could be heard clearly. But no one paid any heed to it.

Tiamat was hovering near the ceiling of the cave, near the stactalites. She didn't move, she didn't make a sound.

She took a shaky breath in as her brain went into overdrive.

The Dragoness quietly landed on the ground, slowly taking another deep breath. She had just witnessed a murder.

The girl's cries and screams stopped. Her body fell slack as soon as the knife had thrust itself deep inside her neck as blood gurgled out of her mouth, her despairing eyes filled with tears as she looked at her brother.

It had happened so fast that Tiamat couldn't do anything but watch.

Suddenly, a damned voice inside her filled her ears. It laughed and screamed at her, beckoning for her to take revenge for the innocent child, and her breathing quickened to the point that she started to bring attention to herself.

"Did you hear that?" someone close to her asked.

Tears filled her eyes, not out of fear, but out of _rage_. The dragon inside her continued to whisper maddening promises of vengeance behind the darkness and the musky scent of blood, and she knew this wouldn't be the last time.

The power rushing to her, something that she had gotten perfectly used to, was empowering. But she knew it was _dangerous_, afterall, the last time she had followed through with it, she had caused too much despair and anguish.

She controlled her breathing until the howling sound grew more distant, until nothing was heard anymore, and she sighed in relief.

The man in white barked yet again. "Bring the other one! We'll finish it this time."

'_The other one?'_ she questioned, as the realization that they were going to sacrifice the little boy slowly dawned on her. Following that, she wondered if she would just wait for the boy to die, just like she had for his sister.

'_Am I really just going to stand here and wait? Am I truly that far gone?'_

The world around her slowed down to a crawl as she contemplated her next move.

'_If I move now, I risk letting one of them get away. If I don't, the kid dies.'_

One of the followers complied, hastily walking towards the cage and opening it.

"No, let me go!" the small voice tried to fight.

"Just shut up and come out you runt!"

Tiamat closed her eyes.

'_Another child is about to be killed in front of you. So why won't you __**move?**__'_

Her experience of volunteering at her old orphanage should have opened her eyes to the harsh reality in front of her, especially if the child was unable to fend for himself, and each time, she had gently soothed the child and taken care of them.

So why couldn't she do that now? Why was she still standing in silence, unseen?

The boy cried as the man roughly dragged him across the rocky ground, screaming in pain while he begged for his captors to let him go.

He thrashed around on the ground, drawing the laughter of all the cloaked people. But the worn clothing on his back and his musky scent had drawn enough unwanted attention as it was.

The boy tried to take off, but his short legs couldn't be compared to the long strides of adults.

One of the followers tackled the boy to the ground, breaking the arm as he wrestled the boy to the ground, mauling him.

After ripping his shirt and snapping his arm, he simply tossed the boy back to the center of the circle with ease where the boy landed with a dull thump.

He was looking at the entrance, his eyes red and his body beaten and bruised.

He looked lost and lonely. As if he knew she was standing there, he pleaded.

"H...elp…"

The boy was prone on his back with his cheeks on the ground, and his arms splayed to his sides, a pose of total submission and bleak resignation.

She knew that look.

The man in white raised his intricate knife into the air once again.

Her decision was made.

"Do you want me to save you?"

The men nearest to her scrambled back in fear, not expecting to hear a voice so close to his ears, but when he looked back, he saw no one.

"Wh-Wh-What was that?!"

"What was what?" the man in white asked in irritation as the ritual was once again disturbed.

"I-I heard something!" he pointed to thin air, "Right there!"

The man in white ordered one of the other cloaked person to bring the torch to where the man was pointing, but found nothing but rocks, as the shadows flickered about.

"There's nothing there."

The man started to panic. "I-I-I'm sure! I heard it!" he pointed straight at where Tiamat was standing, a completely empty area to everybody's eyes. "It's there, it's right there!"

The boy looked at where the man was pointing with bated breath.

Tiamat sighed and the man who was pointing his finger at her yelped. His voice was starting to grate her ears.

She simply brushed his hands aside, and pushed his shoulders away to create room for her to approach the boy.

The man once again cried in fear, "I-I-It touched me!" falling on his behind as fear infested his being, consuming him like a disease that spread within milliseconds. His heart started to race so hard that Tiamat could hear it thump against his ribcage.

But she didn't pay any heed to that.

The Dragoness walked to the boy in front of her. The sound of her shoes clicking against the ground echoed throughout the silent cavern.

Even the man in white had lowered his knife, straining his ears to hear where the clicking sound was coming from, only for him to hear it come closer, and _closer_.

Eventually the sound of the clicking stopped just in front of the boy, and everyone's eyes were transfixed on the empty area.

Tiamat deactivated『Conceal Self』and slowly materialized in front of the boy.

"Y-You! How did you sneak in here?!" the white robed leader began to panic. He had not expected anyone to find them, and had definitely not expected his followers to not notice an intruder.

"Idiots!" he pointed at the brown cloaked followers, frothing at the mouth. "What are you waiting for?! Go kill that bitch!"

Unfortunately, his voice was lost in the mass hysteria of the disciples frantically trying to get away from what they believed to be a ghost of vengeance. For what other kind of spirit would choose to dwell in such a blood-ridden cavern?

It was as if a reaper clad in white had showed up in front of them.

That was until the man in white managed to calm down enough to notice the obvious Adamantite plate on her hips.

"It's the Silver Priestess!"

The man in white was quick to act once he saw that the Priestess didn't have her staff with her. Tiamat had forgotten to retrieve it from her inventory, as she had placed it there when she entered the cave due to the tunnel's small width.

He raised the knife, intending to plunge it through the Adamantite Adventurer's heart, eradicating her while she was still vulnerable.

But when his knife touched her, it was stopped by an unseen force.

Tiamat didn't even spare a glance for the white-robed man and kept her eyes on the prone form of the boy, her gaze unbroken, disregarding everything surrounding her.

"I'll repeat it one more time, child," she said, her gaze sharp as she looked down on him. "Do you want me to help you?"

After a few seconds of understanding what she was trying to say, he weakly nodded.

Tiamat smiled at him, "You can rest easy now. I'll handle these fools."

"You!" the man in white pointed his fingers at her. "Why are you here?!"

Acting as if she hadn't heard him, the Dragoness simply put her hand up, and a transparent golden shield suddenly appeared from nowhere, trapping everyone inside the cavern.

When one of the followers tried to break through the barrier to escape, he found that his knife couldn't even scratch it.

Tiamat put her hand under her chin, "Now, how did Cocytus say it was done…?" she murmured to herself.

"What did you just do?!" the man in white screamed out. "Let us out right now!"

Still ignoring the man, Tiamat raised her right hand, putting her thumb next to her pointer finger, and bent her fingers slightly to the left.

"Was it like this?" she muttered before slamming the heel of her hand down on his neck as hard as she could.

The man felt intense pain, followed by gurgles of blood gushing from his mouth, before he flopped to the ground, completely motionless.

"High Disciple-sama!" one of his followers screamed as he fell down. The disciples flocked around the white-robed man's body.

"He's dead! The High Disciple is dead!"

"Oh shoot, too strong? Maybe half power then?"

She raised her hand once again and proceeded to do the same thing to the nearest man in the vicinity.

Who also fell down after a swift _pop_ could be heard.

Everyone could see that she had dislocated both of their necks.

They started scrambling away from the sole woman in the room, screaming for help. Sadly, there was no one to hear their cries for help.

"Dead again?" she sighed. "Welp, practice makes perfect. Here I go!" she smiled.

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

It had been approximately an hour and a half after Lady Tiamat had entered the pit hole.

And Yuri was still standing there, motionlessly guarding the entry.

From what she has observed so far, the man, the client, had immediately left after Lady Tiamat had entered the cave, and no one had been passing by either.

The place was desolate, as if it was abandoned.

All that was left to accompany her were the dry rocks and the intense sunlight beating on the top of her head.

"Y—Lily…!"

Yuri immediately turned around and looked down at the pit hole where she was greeted with the glorious sight of Lady Tiamat, safe and sound.

"Hannah-sama," she greeted, slightly relieved that her Lady was unharmed.

"I brought a few gifts, mind calling the client for me?"

"As you wish," Yuri bowed before turning around to find the Marquis.

Yuri quickly walked to where she remembered his office was, disregarding the miners she passed by.

As she entered the building they had passed through on their way to the pit, she was stopped by the black-clad guards at the entrance.

"Halt."

Yuri raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me? I am here to inform the Marquis that his quest has been completed."

"That may be true, but please wait here for a moment, adventurer. There had been several cases where someone used illusion magic to try to steal the gems. I hope you can understand that," and indeed, the guard did appear slightly sheepish at having to inspect the companion of the legendary Silver Priestess.

"Bowb! C'mere!" the captain of the guard called out to one of his comrades who began walking towards him, "Can you call the Inspector over?"

"Boss, for the last time, my name is Bob not 'Bowb'."

"Whatever you say, Boob. Just go get the Inspector!"

Bob sighed before giving a salute and walked away to get the Inspector.

"Anyways, if we could trouble you to just sit there for a moment, that would be greatly appreciated," the guard waved towards one of the chairs near the entrance.

Yuri nodded her head before she went to sit down on one of the plush red chairs.

'_Looks like Lady Tiamat's hair,'_ Yuri idly thought as she waited for the Inspector to arrive.

'_Wait, wouldn't that mean I'm, in a way, sitting on Lady Tiamat's hair?" _Yuri squirmed uncomfortably at the thought.

It was at this moment that Bob walked in with the Inspector, a wrinkly white bearded man dressed in a robe decorated with mythril filigree.

The Inspector saw Yuri squirm the moment he entered and inwardly despaired.

'_I know that I'm not married because I spent most of my life studying magic, but am I really that repulsive to women?!'_

He cleared his throat, pushing his despondency to the back of his mind. "Ahem, so if you could stand up please, then we can get on with this inspection."

Yuri stood up from the chair as the Inspector placed a hand on her shoulder.

'_Oh my god ohmygodohmygod this is the first time I've touched a woman in ages!'_

Taking a deep breath in, the Inspector cleared his mind of impure thoughts as he drew from mana from within to cast his divination magic.

"『Detect Magic』, 『Detect Charm』, 『True Sight』."

After confirming that the Priestess's companion was not an imposter, the Inspector announced to the guards, "No traces of deception."

"Thanks Inspector, you could uh, let go of the young lady there now," the captain of the guard pointed at the Inspector's hand which was still on Yuri's shoulder.

The bearded mage immediately pulled his hand away before coughing into his arm, conveniently covering the rush of red on his face. Yuri didn't quite understand what was going on.

He coughed, hiding his apparent blush."Anyways, you're free to go meet the Marquis now," the Inspector pointed down the hallway to Yuri's right.

"I see. In that case, I will take my leave. It was nice meeting all of you."

Yuri started to walk down the hallway before she heard a voice suddenly call out, "W-Wait! What's your name?"

She turned her head and saw that it was the old mage who had called out to her.

"My name? It's Y—Lily."

"Lily-san, what a beautiful name. I am—"

"Thank you for the compliment Inspector-san," and truly, Yuri's opinion of the man went up after he had complimented the alias Lady Tiamat had bestowed upon her, "But I really must go now."

With that, she turned around to walk towards the Marquis's office, the sound of her name still ringing in the old man's ears.

"Lily. I see, in that case I will prove myself worthy of you Lily-san!"

Bob put a hand on the Inspector's shoulder from behind, "Calm down, Gramps."

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

Yuri stood in front an elaborately carved oaken door.

"Excuse me," she knocked on the door. "Hannah-sama has fulfilled your request."

The door slammed open, and Yuri was greeted with a large smile gleaming on the Marquis's face, "Really? That's quick!" and he immediately ran outside to where Lady Tiamat was.

When they finally arrived at the mine, Yuri was shocked to see the change in the background.

The pithole that was about the size of a small well was destroyed. In its place was a glaringly large hole that could easily fit an entire squad.

Moreover, Lady Tiamat's summon, Pentakrisis, was also there.

But what was more surprising was the presence of a small boy behind her, clutching her dress while shivering in fear. Every once in a while, he glanced at Pentakrisis, afraid that the Dragon would suddenly decide to eat him.

"My Lady...this is?"

"Oh him?" Tiamat ruffled the boy's hair. "He was down there in the caves."

Yuri nodded and felt the instinctive need to pat the poor child's head and tell him that everything was going to be alright.

"Good job, Taki," Tiamat softly petted Pentakrisis's snout, which he leaned into with a happy rumble.

"W-What, Hannah-sama?! I asked you here to purify the mine, not destroy it!" the Marquis angrily shouted at the Supreme Being.

Yuri's glasses flashed with barely-constrained wrath, ready to pounce on the man in front of her. But a simple look from Lady Tiamat made her drop her fist.

"Well I did purify it," her Lady said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Moreover, I also brought an extra gift."

Tiamat moved away from the hole, presumably made by her summon, and both Yuri and the man saw a number of men wearing the same brown cloak except for the one at the entrance of the cave.

Yuri moved to stand next to her Lady.

The man's breath hitched in his throat when he saw the dead body on his establishment. His blood ran cold and he gulped as he looked at the captured group.

"G-Guards!" he yelled out.

It turned out that there were no demons in the mine.

Instead, the Silver Priestess had found a few members of the secret organization, Zuranon, who were trying to conduct a ritual to summon the soul of a leader who died in his battle against the Dark Warrior Momon.

They were building a secret chamber to sacrifice the souls of the children in order to summon another soul from the realm of the dead; however, their choice of location was poorly planned because it was so close to the gem mines of one of the Great Nobles of the Kingdom.

Afraid of being found out, they recklessly conducted their ritual, only to be busted by some of the miners who had heard strange noises from the deepest parts of the cave.

They had no choice but to kill any witnesses.

In the end, there were no demons, or spirits to be purified.

"Guards!" the Marquis screamed out yet again, and Yuri looked behind the building to see the guards she had seen before come running with haste.

"Yes!" they bellowed.

"Take care of this mess!" he ordered, "And call the architect of this damned thing, now!"

They immediately scrambled away to fulfill his command.

As the Marquis screeched out his orders, he could hear the sound of a child shrieking in fear from the sound of his voice.

He turned around to see a small child, clutching the hems of the Silver Priestess's dress, dirtying it with his mangy paws.

He clicked his tongue in disgust.

The Marquis took in the appearance of the boy; he was dirty and mangled with a scent he didn't want to be reminded of.

"Who is this?"

Yuri glared at the Marquis. "He is the one survivor Hannah-sa—n found in the mines."

Blumrush looked at Yuri with a sneer on his face, "I didn't ask you, you gold ranked adventurer," he looked towards Tiamat, "Honestly, some subordinates can be absolutely insufferable, am I right Hannah-sama?"

Tiamat took a deep breath as she prepared to give a withering retort to the man in front of her. "What did you—" however a small tug from her dress reminded her of where she was.

The Dragoness looked at the small boy, clutching to her for dear life, shivering in fear.

'_Right, I can't waste any time right now.'_

"I'm sorry Marquis-sama," Tiamat said softly, biting her tongue. She desperately wanted to chew him out for saying something so despicable to Yuri. But if she succumbed to her wrath, there would be a lot more consequences to deal with later.

'_Nope, screw consequences! Yuri's the best maid I could ever ask for!_'

Tiamat looked at the Marquis straight in the eye, her eyes almost seemed like they were on the verge of burning.

"Marquis-sama," she said with more force than before, "There will be _consequences_ if you decide to refer to my disciple like that again. Do you understand?"

The Marquis stared at her in shock. He never expected that the up-to-now demure woman would dare utter such words in his presence.

"Excuse me, but how dare y—"

But before the Marquis could say another word, the Priestess cut him off.

"Yes, I dare. Lily is _my _disciple, not one of your guards or miners. And as far as I'm concerned, she is the best subordinate I could ever ask for," to the side, Yuri coughed, internally fist-pumping.

'_Lady Tiamat praised me!'_

"Why do you even care about a mere gold-ranked adventurer?! You came here only because _I_ asked you to!" the Marquis lamely defended himself.

"That's true," she agreed, and the Marquis immediately thought that the woman had conceded in their verbal bout, only to be more surprised when she continued. "But even though she may be a _mere_ gold-ranked adventurer, that is no excuse to treat her with disrespect. Even though you _are_ my esteemed client, I can't deny the fact that what you said was rude and uncalled for."

"So what?" he said, almost screaming, "I am a Marquis of this country, and you are merely an Adventurer, a female one at that!"

"All the more reason to treat someone of a lower stature than you with respect," she reasoned. "You are the noble of this country, someone who exists to protect their people, and just by looking at how you treat your workers and Lily, it is safe to say that I am _thoroughly disappointed._"

Tiamat saw something flash beneath the surface of his hardened expression, but the emotion disappeared before she could clearly identify it.

'_I should probably stop now…'_

Ignoring her common sense, she pushed on, "Moreover, since the boy was a victim of _your_ carelessness, you will assign him to an orphanage in the capital at once."

Tiamat didn't know, but inside his heart was an expression of an absolute disdain. He abhorred her. To him, they were less than the mud staining his over-shined shoes.

Under that perfectly crafted expression was someone much more cunning than what Tiamat could've imagined. He had spent years mastering his craft, which had made him richer and much more powerful than even the King himself.

He couldn't understand how someone had said something so brazzen, ordering him around like a mere _dog_.

Without saying anything, he turned around, leaving the female adventurers alone.

There was a hint of a smile on his face, surrounded by stiff cheeks. It was not the supple grin of a friend, but the joy of someone who had triumphed over their foe. One of the guards who was looking at his facial expression shivered in fear.

He would not let them get away with humiliating him, and he would wait for even years to make sure of that.

Especially since he knew that the Priestess would be invited to the Capital soon.

His grin widened.

'_Let's see if the Priestess can survive the arena of the court.'_

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

Tiamat and Yuri watched as the Marquis left with the Guards who were carrying the cultists Tiamat had captured in the cave.

'_Ohmygod did I go too far? I should've known that I shouldn't have said anything, but Yuri was being mocked and no way was I going to just sit there. Wait, what if he decides to not pay us? AAAAAAA I'm such an idiot!_

She absently stared into the distance as her mind was assaulted by countless worries.

To her surprise, the Marquis apparently decided to listen to her and had sent a carriage along with a guard to send the boy to an orphanage in the capital.

The guard walked up to her and Yuri while sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, I'm real sorry about that ladies. Boss-man can get pretty angry sometimes. Anyways, I'm here to pick up the boy."

As the man took a step towards the boy, the child ran towards Tiamat and wrapped himself around her leg, refusing to let go.

Yuri watched as her Lady's smile seemed to grow weary and sad.

"Hey," Tiamat knelt down to look at the boy in the eye, and patted his head, "They're going to send you to somewhere safe. Somewhere where bad people can't hurt you."

His small hands that were clutching the hem of her dress clenched even harder. "B-But I don't wanna go somewhere else! You're s-safe." the boy began to sniffle, on the verge of sobbing. "B-Bad people can't h-hurt me if I stay with y-you."

Fat droplets of tears were falling from his eyes. Tiamat took in the appearance and scent of the boy. His brown hair and eyes, coupled with his slightly malnourished body mangled with the scent of excrement reminded her of the children she took care of at the orphanage back on earth.

Heck, he reminded her of herself.

She put her forehead against the boy's. "I have to go to a lot of places that would be dangerous for you. It wouldn't be safe for you to stay with me."

His eyes turned red as his chest began to shake, "I-I want to s-stay…"

"Then let's make a promise," Tiamat lifted her little finger and wrapped it around the boy's.

"I promise that you'll be safe," she tightened her finger around his tiny pinky, "I promise that you'll make new friends in this new place, so you don't have to worry, okay? Everyone there is your family now."

"B-But I don't want a new family…"

Tiamat looked at his quivering brown eyes, unsure and scared. "I understand, I know how you feel. Your sister—" she stopped herself. The boy in front of her was only a child, not much older than eight.

She didn't want him to be reminded of the event that just happened in front of him. Afterall, to see a loved one die right in front of you was the worst thing in the world.

She knew what he felt, she could relate. In the end it was her who killed Shalltear, who she loved like a daughter. Her blood would forever be ingrained on her skin. A guilt that she would have to carry for the rest of her life.

"Life is like a wheel, it spins and turns, but it never stays in place. That's life. We have to move on, no matter how we feel," Tiamat's eyes glazed over as she stared into the distance.

_How cruel_.

How cruel it was that she had to explain what grief was to a child.

She quietly shook her head. There would always be time for philosophical contemplation later. For now though, she had something much more important to do.

"You know what this is?" Tiamat asked with a smile, referring to her pinky that was entwined with the boy's pinky. "This is called a pinky promise; it's a powerful spell. Do you want to hear what the spell sounds like?"

The boy quietly nodded.

Tiamat slowly hummed, moving their entwined fingers up and down, as if to dance with the melody she was singing.

"_Pinky pinky bow-bell. Whoever tells a lie will sink down to the bad place, and never rise up again,_" Tiamat smiled at him.

The boy stopped crying and looked at Tiamat curiously, having never heard of such a strange song before.

"I will keep my promise and you will too," she continued. "My promise is to keep you safe, and you have to promise to me as well."

"W-What is it?"

Tiamat looked the boy right in his glistening brown eyes, and gently patted his hair. "Don't be picky with your food, you have to eat lots and grow strong. Stay warm, and don't stay up late, most importantly," she tweaked his nose, "Promise me that you'll give your new family a chance."

He started to smile, "T-That's not f-fair," he hiccuped, "I have a lot more p-promises than y-you."

Tiamat only smiled at him, a warm happy smile that told him everything was going to be alright. "So, promise?" she asked.

He slowly nodded, "I promise."

"Alright, you pinky promised then, okay? That's a stronger spell than a regular promise," Tiamat chuckled, and the boy followed.

"Hannah-sama," Yuri said from behind her, afraid of breaking a tender moment. "The carriage is here."

Tiamat looked behind her and saw a delicate carriage that shone with hints of light blue; apparently, the Marquis had paid to have his carriages decorated with mythril engravings. Despite its fragile appearance, Tiamat could tell that it was enchanted with multiple spells that would make it as sturdy as an armored vehicle on Earth.

She slowly let go of her hold on the boy's little finger.

"Go," she gently urged the boy forward, as the guard opened the door for the boy to enter.

"Don't worry about him lady, I'll make sure he gets there safely."

Tiamat looked at the burly man before her, "Thank you very much. Please take care of him."

The boy quietly walked to where she guided him, and sat down on the carriage, his eyes still scared and unsure.

But when Tiamat raised her little finger for him to see, his shoulders visibly relaxed, and the horse finally pulled the carriage away.

She watched as the carriage disappeared into the distance.

Yuri watched her Lady with heavy downcast eyes. Albedo-sama was right; the Supreme Being ought to be more honest with herself.

The Dragoness looked like she was about to burst into tears.

Her amethyst eyes kept on following the back of the carriage, biting her lip as it went further and further away. After serving Lady Tiamat for some time, she knew what the Supreme Being was thinking.

"My Lady, excuse me for saying this, but there's still something you wish to say to him, am I correct?"

Tiamat stood silent for a short moment before she suddenly vanished in a burst of speed.

The boy was sitting in the carriage across from the scary black-armored man when he heard a faint high-pitched noise outside. He poked his head out the window and widened his eyes when he saw the beautiful lady who saved him keeping up with the horses.

"I'm sorry!" she shouted as tears rolled down her cheeks, startling the boy.

"Why?" the boy asked in hushed whispers, why was she saying 'Sorry'? Why was she crying?

"I'm sorry I couldn't save your sister, I'm really sorry—!"

Realizing what she had said, the boy's eyes grew wide and apologetic as his emotions ran rampant. "I-I'm really f-fine, so…"

Unable to rein in his emotions, tears once again ran from his eyes.

In the past, he cried because he realized he would be all alone.

But this time, he cried because she cried for him.

"I'll go visit soon, it's a pinky promise!" she screamed and waved the boy goodbye as he watched her from the windows of the carriage. She finally stopped running as the carriage drove past the gates of the Marquis's estate.

The boy couldn't control his tears as the lady disappeared behind the horizon, and the man who was in the carriage with him could only look at him awkwardly.

The beautiful lady had saved him and cried for his sake.

Even though he had begged multiple times before he went into that cave, no one had paid him and his sister any heed. It was only her who did so.

"She's a real nice person, isn't she?" the man asked him.

"Mmn…" the boy nodded, wiping away his tears only for more to come out.

"Stop crying," the man said, and the boy's breath hitched in his throat as he looked at the man in front of him. A burly man wearing scary black armor. "You're a man aren't you?" he put his hand on the boy's head. "And you promised the pretty lady as well. A man's gotta keep his promises."

The boy looked up at the man. Even though his eyes were red and puffy from crying, he willed himself to stop upon hearing the man's words.

His father had stopped working after his farm was taken over. Their family had been carrying a huge debt and their neighbors had refused to get involved with them.

It was for that reason that their own parents had sold them away.

Even worse, without shedding a tear, his grandparents had left and fled the night, running away from their debts as well.

The only one who would cry with him and protect him was his sister.

And there he was, completely alone, overwhelmed with the grief of not only seeing his parents abandon him, but also his sister's lifeless body lying on the ground.

The boy was forced to cry all alone.

But she was there.

She had cried with him.

She was kind because he knew that she had cried _for _him.

"Mmn!" he replied to the man in front of him.

"You're gonna be fine kid, don't worry," the big man ruffled his hair, "Name's Bob by the way, what's yours?"

"Ash."

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

Tiamat and Yuri were sitting in the well lit office of the Marquis as one of the maids placed a cup of tea in front of the two of them.

"Thank you," Tiamat said to the maid, but didn't proceed to take a drink out of it. She still felt a bit uncomfortable sitting in the office, especially after her outburst towards the Marquis.

The Marquis was wearing a luxurious blue coat fit for nobility, at a quality even higher than what she had seen in Paolo's store. She guessed it was something of a noble's privilege.

He was sitting across from them, studying her and Yuri intently, and Tiamat got the feeling that he was not to be trusted. Especially from the way he smiled.

Tiamat knew that type of smile.

"Thank you very much Hannah-sama and Lily-san for accepting the quest and even subjugating the cultists of Zuranon themselves. The Kingdom has had a hard time catching their scattered members especially after the incident at the cemetery with the Dark Warrior Momon."

Tiamat smiled serenely, "Of course, Marquis-san."

"I have to say this, but," he bowed in his seat. "Please forgive me."

The Dragoness looked at the Marquis in shock. She had expected him to avoid the elephant in the room entirely.

Did she perhaps misjudge his character?

"I do have to apologize as well, Marquis-san," she closed her eyes, too ashamed to look him in the eye. "After seeing that boy I just…"

The Marquis smiled at her with the utmost sincerity, "I understand Hannah-sama, women must get worked up over children, it is in your instinct after all," he reasoned.

Tiamat lifted her eyes to the Marquis; the way he said those words was kind of..._odd_.

"You will make a great mother," he suddenly complimented.

Tiamat looked away as she tried to stem the dull pain in her heart. The heaviness was starting to take a toll on her body as much as her mind.

Just how many years had passed since she experienced that numbness of loss? And now the Marquis words had hit her out of nowhere.

She remembered those days like it was yesterday.

Her irises were threaded scarlet and her eyeballs hung heavy in their sockets. She had cried until there was nothing left inside but a raw emptiness that nibbled at her insides like a hungry rat.

She remembered when the sun shone high in the sky, but not for her. Never for her.

Seeing that the Priestess didn't reply, the Marquis continued. "With that being said, you will be properly rewarded for this, especially after that awful scene you had just witnessed. It was entirely my fault, I should have managed my mines carefully," the Marquis smirked. "That is why I will grant anything you wish for."

Tiamat's face was heavy with weariness. All she wanted to do was to go home and rest.

Resisting the urge to sigh, she replied, "The payment written on the parchment is more than enough, Marquis-san."

The Marquis laughed, "You don't have to be so humble, Hannah-sama. I would be doing the Kingdom a great disservice for not rewarding you properly."

But Tiamat didn't respond to what he said.

She just sat there with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

Marquis Blumrush's eyes moved to the Priestess's disciple who was sitting next to her, but it seemed that she was also not easily persuaded. There was nothing in her expression that could betray the spectacled adventurer's thoughts.

He sighed, "Is there really nothing you desire, Hannah-sama?"

Tiamat hummed, trying to think of a proper response, "Not really, Marquis-san."

Suddenly, the Dragon in her rumbled, reminding her of the large ruby sitting near the entrance, displayed for all to see.

"That makes it harder for me, Hannah-sama," he said with a smile full of formalities.

That beautiful, brilliant red.

"I came here to discuss with you about the proper payment I should give you."

That quality and shine.

"I guess we would have to stay here until you have decided, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat finally picked up the tea cup in front of her, quietly taking a sip.

"I understand Marquis-san. In that case, there's something I think will be perfect for payment."

The Marquis's eyes widened in surprise, not expecting the woman in front of him to come to a decision so quickly.

He had experience working with adamantite adventurers before, and it was safe to say that he had a poor impression of them.

Especially considering the fact that the adamantite adventurer was from the nobility like he was.

"What is it, Hannah-sama?"

Tiamat's smile grew behind the tea cup.

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

The noisy wind whipped at Yuri and Tiamat's hair as they flew above the clouds on Pentakrisis.

Yuri who was still not used to riding Pentakrisis had been rocking back and forth from the powerful surges of the Dragon's wingbeats.

To be honest, the first time Tiamat had ridden on Taki, she hadn't felt anything uncomfortable. Maybe that was because of her high defense and resist stats, something she had finally noticed when Yuri pointed out that it was quite hard to ride Pentakrisis without a saddle.

Pentakrisis was covered with scales, spikes, and ridges, not nearly as comfortable as riding a horse that was covered by hair.

The Dullahan had mentioned that she never expected that riding a dragon could be so noisy; the dragon's breathing, wings flapping, and the rubbing sound of the saddle on scales made for a deafening chorus.

The noise problem was only made worse by the fact that dragons were faster and had no need to fly in a conventional fashion. All in all, it made for a ride like no other.

Since there was only one saddle, Tiamat had asked Yuri to ride Pentakrisis all by herself after they had reached the clouds, unseen by anyone, where Tiamat then unfurled her wings and flew on her own. Afterall, if Yuri was not strapped in for her first ride, she would probably become a distant red smear on the ground.

Tiamat reached into her inventory and opened the box given to her, containing the reward the Marquis had decided to gift to them.

She took it out of the box and admired it under the sunlight while Pentakrisis and Yuri just watched with fascination mid-air.

A ruby about the size of her palm.

The gem, which was cut into a convex shape that exhibited a striking six pointed star, shone brightly in the direct sunlight.

As Tiamat stared into its depths, she found the gem's gleam distracting her from the tragedies she had seen.

She was never one to admire jewelry back on earth, finding them too expensive and too much of a hassle to own. Afterall, jewelry didn't fit someone like her.

But she felt somehow satisfied knowing that she owned this particular gem.

"Look Yuri, isn't it beautiful?" she cooed, a distant smile plastered on her face. "Ah, I can't wait to see this displayed in my room."

Yuri strained to hear what the Supreme Being had said due to the wind, but once she did, she yelled in response, unable to even hear her own reply properly.

"I didn't know you like gems, My Lady."

Tiamat's eyes were glued to the treasure she had just obtained, "I'm surprised myself. I was never one to buy trinkets, but this one called out to me so persistently. Somehow I felt like I had to have it."

Yuri let out a small smile when she saw that the Dragoness had cheered up after they had left the boy. To think a large red stone could comfort her when even the vast Treasury could not...

As long as Lady Tiamat was happy.

After a few minutes of appreciating the ruby in her hands, she put it back into her inventory.

Tiamat felt curiosity leak through the bond between her and Pentakrisis. It appeared that he was interested in what could make her so happy.

She gently flew in front of Pentakrisis and took the gem back out. "Look Taki. Pretty isn't it?"

The Dragon cooed in response, nodding excitedly over the shine of the gem.

"I can't wait to go back to Nazarick and show this off to Pandora's Actor," she hummed cheerfully.

Even Pentakrisis was rumbling happily in response.

╭( ･ㅂ･)و *:･ﾟ✧

Tiamat ordered Pentakrisis to land near the entrance of E-Rantel as usual, and skipped happily towards the Adventurer's Guild while Yuri followed behind her.

But somehow, when she arrived, the city seemed much more crowded than before.

The Dragoness looked around. It was as if a spectacle was occuring in front of the door to the Guild.

People were running, pressing against each other to see what was going on.

The crowd had a life of its own, their clothes shining in the sunlight as the people moved like enchanting shoals of fish.

They even got Tiamat curious enough that she slipped slowly through them to see what was going on.

She had expected a brawl or some outrageous scene, but she couldn't believe her sight as soon as her eyes landed on a familiar figure.

A muscular man with sunbathed skin, shortly trimmed black hair and brown eyes that were as sharp as a sword.

Behind him was what looked like his Warrior Troops and a carriage with sculptures of solid gold bearing the symbol of the Kingdom itself.

As soon as she was in front of the crowd, he noticed her.

Gazef Stronoff.

His sharp eyes that had been searching through the crowd immediately mellowed as soon as his razor gaze landed on her own. A smile grew as he took his very first step towards her.

"Hannah Annafelowz," he bellowed, power evident in his clear voice as it bellowed through the entire crowd.

Yuri, feeling some sort of threat, immediately placed herself between the man and Tiamat, her glasses glaring with a wary glint.

The sudden action caused his troops to clutch their swords.

Gazef flinched when he saw the spectacled lady bearing a gold plate on her neck, and backed off immediately, signalling to his men to let go of their swords.

Gazef cleared his throat, "Are you Hannah Annafelowz?"

"What business do you have with My Lady?" Yuri immediately responded, her voice calm as her eyes darted through her surroundings looking for a possible exit.

Seeing how tense Yuri was, Tiamat put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. "Lily," she said softly.

"Hannah-sama…" her head turned back and once she saw the warm smile of her Goddess, she immediately moved to her side.

"It's alright," Tiamat whispered.

"You are Hannah Annafelowz, right?" Gazef asked once again.

Tiamat raised her head up high, responding with the utmost confidence, "Yes."

Even though she had only met Gazef once, Tiamat felt like the man could be trusted. But there was only one problem.

She didn't alter the memories of Gazef Stronoff and his Warrior Troops.

They still knew her as Hannah Annafelowz, a red haired woman with a butler by her side. Not a silver haired Priestess. Moreover, Tiamat didn't alter her body and facial structure at all, so the color of her eyes and the appearance of her face remained the same.

When she tried to recall her memories, she distinctly remembered only showing her face to the Warrior-Captain, so there was no need to worry about the others recognizing her.

Thousands of speculations entered her mind.

'_This is bad…_'

Were they trying to spill her secrets? Or perhaps the Kingdom knew something about her true appearance? Were they trying to capture her or something?

Gazef's eyes moved to her hips where her Adamantite plate was resting, as he tried to confirm her appearance over and over again.

Afterall, there was only one silver haired woman with an Adamantite plate in E-Rantel.

"I see," Gazef said and in one fluid motion, he straightened his back. His movement was copied by his troops who moved in unison, surprising her a little bit with their impressive synchronization.

"Hannah Annafelowz," he bellowed again. "By the order of King Ramposa the Third, you have been summoned to the Capital."

The people who witnessed this spectacle could only gulp, including Tiamat.

Tiamat smiled her usual smile, which was a bit more strained than usual. She could not falter now, especially if the Kingdom was here to arrest her, "May I know why, Warrior-Captain?"

"The King requires an audience with you, Hannah-sama," he bowed and his troops bowed with him.

'_Say sike right now.'_

* * *

**Canon Omake: A Certain Heretical Demon**

* * *

The Great Underground Tomb Of Nazarick.

An unconquerable dungeon filled with monsters and demons alike.

The dungeon itself was stretched to ten vast floors, and to reach one point to another, there were specific points on each floor where gates opened to allow magical transit.

The first to the third floors were the Catacombs, a subterranean burial chamber where hordes of undead wandered around in the darkness.

The fourth floor was an underground lake contained within a cavern.

The fifth floor was a wide area filled with numerous icebergs where the Frozen Prison was located. The captured enemies of Nazarick were locked there.

The sixth floor was a jungle, the only floor that was capable of reproducing the day and night cycle that changed according to the actual time outside. This floor was the widest area in Nazarick, about four kilometers wide with a large lake at its center. Everyone knows that this was where Lady Tiamat liked to spend her time with her Dragons and the twins.

Next was his floor, a perfect floor for him where he had everything he needed to perform his function.

The seventh floor was where crimson lava flowed like an ocean and where demons were as common as the bugs on the ground. The _hell world_.

But even if he said that; recently, he had been spending most of his time on the fifth floor where the Room of Truth and the Frozen Prison were located.

He was Demiurge, the Floor Guardian of the Seventh Floor of the Great Tomb of Nazarick and the commander of the NPC defenses.

A demon.

Currently, he was staring at the person in front of him who was submissively sitting on the cold floor with her head down while he looked from behind the metal bars that separated them.

She was shackled to the walls of the prison by her ankles, and her prison door was heavily guarded by two Evil Lords, Demiurge's personal bodyguards.

Her long red hair was splayed on the floor, as if blood was spilling from her head.

"Lady Tiamat," he greeted, his glasses glinting with excitement.

The Dragoness weakly lifted her head as she let out a deep exhale. Her hot breath came out in visible clouds, demonstrating the extreme chilliness of the prison. Despite the frosty air, Demiurge could see the sharp glint of her fiery amethyst eyes behind her red locks.

That gaze brought chills down his spine.

Her sharp relentless gaze told him everything he needed to know about her mental fortitude.

"It's time for an interrogation," he continued, pushing his glasses upwards to mask his unease.

Wrath opened the lock to the prison door to allow Demiurge in, and behind Demiurge were tools necessary for this _special _interrogation.

The Evil Lord wanted to sigh out loud.

How did it come to this…?

* * *

**A few days ago**

Ainz sighed at his table as he flipped through the pages of the report with Tiamat by his left and Albedo on his right.

As usual, they were working on the current policies and management of Nazarick's staff, trying to make the workplace a better place for everyone.

Suddenly, two knocks on the wooden door shattered his concentration.

Albedo looked at him for permission and after a tired nod, Albedo walked over to the door to open it.

Lo and behold, the person behind the door turned out to be Demiurge, walking towards his table with the usual confident smirk plastered on his face, looking as pristine as ever.

"Oh, Demiurge!" Tiamat greeted, thankful for the sudden distraction from paperwork.

He bowed, "Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat."

"What is it, Demiurge? Is there something you need?" Ainz asked.

The Demon raised his head, "Ainz-sama, as you might know, I had interrogated the prisoners that Lady Tiamat had sent me."

Ainz nodded, he and Tiamat were well aware of this fact. Sadly, the prisoners seemed to have been killed by some sort of anti-torture spell.

"My failures from then still haunt me. I should've checked for anti-interrogation spells first, and that leads me to my main point," Demiurge continued, "What if the prisoner cannot be interrogated?"

"What do you mean by that?" Tiamat asked this time.

Ainz shifted to her and looked at her gratefully; he wanted to ask the same question as well. It was pretty useful to have someone who was willing to ask questions straightforwardly.

"What if the next prisoner that comes to Nazarick is immune to my methods? That is why I came here to consult with you, Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat."

"I see," Ainz nodded.

"Why not?" Tiamat tilted her head curiously. "Can't you just use『Command Mantra』on them?"

"Even though my『Command Mantra』is effective, I am merely concerned that there may be someone who is unaffected by such a skill, Lady Tiamat," his smile widened, "For example, someone of your caliber. With high enough defenses and resist, 『Command Mantra』 will be rendered completely useless."

"So you're saying that you are trying to look into other methods of interrogation, is it Demiurge?"

"As expected of Ainz-sama!"

Understanding finally dawned on the Dragoness. "Hoo…Then," she smiled sincerely at the idea. "Why don't you try interrogating me instead?"

Demiurge and Albedo snapped their heads to Tiamat after hearing her suggestion.

"M-My Lady…" Albedo responded in shock.

"_No_," was Ainz's immediate response.

Tiamat flinched at the sudden rejection. "Why? It could be fun, like playing a game, right?"

"Did you even know what an interrogation entails?" Ainz asked wearily.

"Hm, like physical torture, basically forcing someone to spit out information, something like that?"

"Are you even aware of what kind of things these prisoners go through?"

"No," she answered innocently.

"You…" Ainz seethed, "You _fool_."

"B-But Demiurge needs help right? I think with my build, it would be perfect for him to conduct new kinds of interrogation methods that don't involve physical torture since it wouldn't work on me anyways. Besides, I trust that Demiurge won't harm me."

Albedo glared at Demiurge, threatening the Demon that there would be hell to pay if the Goddess had so much as even a scratch on her skin.

But the Demon was undeterred, instead his smile widened even further as he bowed towards the Dragoness. "Thank you for your faith in me, My Lady."

Ainz sighed, the simple conversation had taken a massive toll on him. "Do you really need help with this new method, Demiurge?"

"If Lady Tiamat offers, who am I to refuse, Ainz-sama?"

The silence in the office had become deafening. But when Ainz looked at Tiamat's sparkly eyes looking at him in eager anticipation, he couldn't help himself.

"Fine."

"Ainz-sama!" Albedo interjected, but when Ainz raised his hand, the succubus immediately silenced herself.

"However, I have a few rules," his red pin-prick orbs burned at Demiurge. "I will give Tiamat a few words, and you will need to extract these words from her. No physical torture, no mental ones either. Do you understand, Demiurge? I want her back fully healthy."

Demiurge smiled, this would be a challenge for him as the brain of Nazarick. "I understand, Ainz-sama! I will leave you now to prepare, Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat," he bowed, and eagerly exited the room with a spring in his step.

After Demiurge had walked through the door, Ainz immediately stood up, and grabbed both of Tiamat's shoulders.

"Tia, listen to me."

"Y-Yes?"

"Remember that whatever Demiurge says later is not true, it's all just part of the..._game_. Right, remember that this is just a game, you understand?"

Tiamat nodded with a smile, "Yeap!"

"Ainz-sama, does Lady Tiamat really have to do this?"

Ainz looked at Albedo gravely, "Things are now in motion that cannot be undone …"

Regardless of Ainz and Albedo's worries, Tiamat still looked excited, "Waa, a game with Demiurge, how exhilarating!" she clapped excitedly, "So, what are those words, Ainz? Tell me, tell me!"

Ainz sighed yet again.

If only she knew that this den of monsters was so much more dangerous than the ones in the outside world…

* * *

"So…" Demiurge looked down on the imprisoned Dragoness, "You don't plan on speaking?"

Tiamat shook her head vigorously.

Wrath could only look at the scene in utter confusion.

This was a Supreme Being they were interrogating, far different from the other puny humans from before.

Whatever Demiurge-sama was trying to do was going to be useless.

Not only was Lady Tiamat a Dragon with high stamina, her job classes also came with high defensive stats. She had survived where others would be reduced to dust, with countless triumphs to her name.

Her amethyst eyes stared back at Demiurge unyieldingly.

It was obvious to Wrath that she would never yield to such petty methods.

When the Dragoness didn't respond, Demiurge replied. "I see…" fixing his glasses upwards, "Well, I'm sorry that it has come to this, but…"

An iron cabinet with a hinged front and spikes on its exterior, sufficiently tall enough to enclose her inside was brought to the prison.

An iron maiden.

"Starting today, the _special interrogation_ will begin."

"Bring it, Demiurge."

Demiurge's gem like eyes glinted, "Well then…" he gripped the door to the iron maiden open, and Tiamat couldn't help but gulp in fear.

Ainz-sama had commanded him that he could not employ physical or mental torture. So Demiurge had to come up with more... _creative _methods to extract information from her.

Demiurge took something out of an iron maiden, a flat round circle with a heavenly smell.

Wrath looked once again, wiping his eyes with the palm of his hand as if he was hallucinating.

"Demiurge-sama, this is…"

"A pizza."

Wrath internally seethed. What the hell was he going to do with some pizza? Trying to use food to lure Lady Tiamat as if she was a child…

"Uwaa, it looks so good..." Tiamat whispered.

'_Eh?'_

Wrath had never whipped his head back so fast.

Tiamat, who noticed his unbearable stare that screamed out 'Are you for real?' immediately tried to defend herself.

"No! Don't get me wrong! I wasn't tempted by the pizza! I was objectively stating that it is delicious, like anybody would!"

Wrath noticed that Lady Tiamat was speaking quicker than usual.

"I am a Dragon! I will never concede to you, Demiurge!"

Demiurge didn't say anything.

He slowly cut a perfect triangular slice from the circle. The combination of the acidic tomato smell, cheese, and basil wafted through the air. Moreover, the stretching of that cheese…

Unconsciously, Tiamat was drooling while looking at the pizza with heart-shaped eyes.

"_Kkh_, that overwhelming aroma of wheat, the soft and crispy bottom, and the pull of that cheese as the pizza was being torn part. Demiurge, I never expected you to use such an underhanded trick."

Demiurge could only smile at her praise. "The interrogation is not yet finished, My Lady."

Tiamat gasped, "Don't tell me—!"

The Demon proceeded to take the first bite from that freshly cooked pizza.

The thing was, he was eating it from the crust downwards.

"W-Wait! What are you doing?! Stop!"

Demiurge continued until he had finished the first slice, while Tiamat could only watch in pain.

"What are you doing, Demiurge?! To eat a pizza, you _have_ to pick up a slice by the crust and fold it slightly in a U-shape then take a bite from the pointed end of the pizza slice! This will keep the cheese and toppings from sliding off when you take a bite! This is logic!"

But Demiurge didn't pay any heed to what she was saying.

Instead, he slowly, dramatically picked up another slice.

Tiamat grinded her teeth, "You better eat it right this time…"

The interrogator smirked. The glint of his glasses bounced off the countless crystals in the icy dungeon. Even though she badly wanted to correct the way he ate the pizza, the Dragoness couldn't do anything as she watched the injustice that was being committed in front of her.

Then, he did the unthinkable.

To that perfectly baked pizza, Demiurge pulled off the stretchy cheese and pepperonis and discarded them in the disposal bin behind the iron maiden before proceeding to eat the toppingless pizza.

Tiamat stared at the discarded toppings in disbelief, "H-How could you…? If you ripped off the toppings like that, then it's just a piece of bread. It's no longer a pizza anymore," she said in hushed whispers. Whispers that the demon had most definitely heard.

"I need the words that Ainz-sama, gave you, My Lady."

As if woken up from a trance, Tiamat's head moved from the mutilated thrown-away pizza toppings to Demiurge, who was proudly bearing the smirk of victory.

"P-Password…?" Tiamat looked down at the floor, "That's right, we're playing a game, aren't we? I-I can't give you the password Demiurge. The secret words that Ainz had entrusted to me, I—"

Demiurge sighed, but he had expected this outcome, "I understand, My Lady. Then you leave me with no choice."

He picked up another slice of pizza and continued committing the same atrocities he did before.

"N-No, w-wait!"

Sharp teeth tore the toppings from the pizza, letting the wasted food drop to the plate uneaten.

"W-Wait, th-the p-pizza…!"

Elongated fingernails slowly ripped off the cheesy goodness and tossed it into the trash bin.

It was a never ending circle of hell that she couldn't escape from, and it finally ended when Demiurge had finished butchering all eight slices of pizza.

"I...I give up…" Tiamat declared in hushed whispers. "I give up...I surrender, so please…eat the pizza normally. Please...don't do this to the pizza..."

Demiurge licked his hand, "Oh? Why would I do that?" he smirked,

"Y-You demon…"

Demiurge fixed his glasses as he smirked, "I will come back tomorrow for round two, My Lady. Remember, this is only the beginning."

As soon as he had said his piece, he left, leaving Tiamat alone with a small trash bag filled with the toppings of the pizza.

Inside of her, a small chef cried relentlessly.

* * *

Today was a brand new day.

As soon as he walked into the prison cell made specifically to seperate Lady Tiamat from the other prisoners, he was greeted with the lost, soulless eyes of the Dragoness.

Demiurge looked at Lady Tiamat with a grin, "It's time for part two, My Lady."

Wrath, who was watching the Supreme One all night, could only look at her with pity. "Do we have to do this, Demiurge-sama?" he asked sadly.

"Yes," Demiurge nodded, "This is for the sake of Nazarick after all. Our Lady here has volunteered to help."

This time, Demiurge had brought a cinnamon roll bun, still warm.

The smell of cinnamon wafted through the cold air.

"Uh, Demiurge-sama."

"What is it Wrath?"

"I don't think such a thing could ever misguide Lady Tiamat."

"It's alright, Wrath," Tiamat interjected gently, taking a deep breath.

After what had happened yesterday, she had been preparing her mental fortress against Demiurge's interrogation methods. She had never expected him to be so ruthless. Now though? She was certain that she would be ready to take whatever Demiurge was throwing at her.

Afterall, what could be worse than eating a pizza like that?

"I'm confident this time! Afterall…" she raised her thumbs up. "I'm on team cheesecake!"

Wrath was getting more and more worried by her casual responses.

He shook his head, _'No, no. I shouldn't worry too much. This is Lady Tiamat, the Goddess of all Dragons, the one who prevailed over her father. The impenetrable dragoness!'_

Demiurge started pouring out the cream cheese glaze, covering the entire bun with the sweet glaze.

Tiamat twitched in anticipation.

'_As expected of a cinnamon roll, the delicious scent wafted all the way here. Just inhaling it is making me fantasize about eating it out of reflex! There's no way Demiurge can ruin this!_'

She inhaled deeply with a happy sigh.

The sweet yeasted dough was rolled out, and a thick layer of melted butter was smeared over the rolled out dough.

Tiamat couldn't help but lick her lips.

The whole thing was rolled up, cut up, baked, and coated with a cream cheese glaze.

Everything about it just oozed deliciousness.

"What are you gonna do, Demiurge…" she whispered.

Demiurge began to lift the cinnamon roll from the plate.

"The interrogation begins here!"

Demiurge slowly turned the cinnamon roll upside down as Tiamat watched in confusion.

He lazily brought the sweet dessert to his mouth, making sure that the Supreme Being in front of him would get the full view of what was about to happen.

The Demon smirked when he saw her horrified expression behind his glasses as she finally realized what he was about to do.

He dramatically chomped down on the bottom of the pastry, eliciting a reaction of revulsion from Tiamat.

"T-There's no way..." Tiamat stared wide-eyed in disgust at Demiurge who was eating the cinnamon bun upside down. "How could you Demiurge! How could you ruin cinnamon rolls?!"

The demon smirked, "I will only eat the bottom and leave out the top part. If you don't give me the word now, I will _throw out the rest_."

"YOU HERETIC!"

"Incredible, would you look at that? The crispy bottom is perfect. I guess the cream cheese glazed top is overrated after all." Demiurge proceeded to take another bite from the bottom.

The anguished screams of the Dragoness could be heard throughout the Fifth Floor.

And that's how Tiamat, the Goddess of all Dragons gave up completely.

"I see, so those are the words Ainz-sama had given you, My Lady."

Tiamat completely disregarded what Demiurge had said and silently wept in the corner, her mind scarred with the image of Demiurge eating a cinnamon bun upside down.

Wrath could only look at Lady Tiamat with complete dejection.

The Dragoness, who noticed his disappointed stare, said to him, "Wrath, an upside down cinnamon bun is a serious matter! There is nothing more heretical than that! NOTHING!"

"...I see," the Evil Lord took a small step away from the Dragoness as Demiurge freed her from the dungeon's clutches, escorting her back to Ainz-sama's office while she wept in pain over the waste of such good food, especially the cream cheese glaze topping.

That night, Demiurge sat in the Burning Temple trying to decipher the words he had gotten from Lady Tiamat. The sound of burning air and hissing flames filled his ears as he stared into the distance, his arms resting against the obsidian table.

There were only two words that Lady Tiamat had uttered from her mouth: _Goddamn Bur._

He had searched the entire collection of Ashurbanipal, and even asked Titus for help on what the phrase could possibly be referring to, but to no avail.

Titus spent the entire day looking for books that could translate the cryptic password Ainz-sama had given Demiurge. The only thing he found was that "Bur" was something related to plants, but the librarian couldn't comprehend what "Goddamn" could represent.

If two of them together could not figure out the meaning of the phrase, there could only be one possible solution. It must be a saying in the same category as "Shi-ti-dev".

The language of gods.

"As expected of Ainz-sama. Even if I won the battle, I still lost the war," Demiurge sighed in exaltation.

In the end, he closed the book and headed out to the Supreme Being's office, where he would announce his complete loss to this very wonderful, but short-lived game.

Perhaps they would play again in the future.

With that, Demiurge exited his office.

If only he had observed a little bit more and changed the letters around…

_Dumb Dragon._

That was the true meaning of the password Ainz had given to Tiamat.

* * *

"Ainz," Tiamat had returned early from the Frozen Prison that night, coming into the office with teary eyes. "I _lost_."

She sprawled herself out on the purple sofa, her face burrowed in the plush pillows.

"I know," Ainz observed his friend. It looked like she didn't sustain any damage, to which he sighed in relief.

'_That's good.'_

"Lady Tiamat, you've returned!" Albedo greeted her with a hug as Tiamat sat up again, "Now, please tell me if you have any injuries. What did Demiurge do for two days? Have you eaten? Did you get tortured?"

The Succubus checked every square inch of her skin.

Suddenly Tiamat started sniffling on the sofa, which surprised both Ainz and Albedo.

Ainz immediately stood from his chair and went over to the sofa.

"My Lady, is there anything wrong? Are you perhaps injured?" Albedo's pitch raised higher, as she started to panic. "I swear if Demiurge laid a finger on you, I will personally send him to hell!"

"Demiurge is a _demon…_" she said with a small voice.

"Tia, did Demiurge did anything to you…?" Ainz asked carefully.

Tiamat tore herself away from Albedo so quickly that both Ainz and Albedo flinched. "No, but listen to this Ainz, Demiurge threw away pizza toppings and eats a cinnamon roll from the bottom, _from the bottom_!" she put a palm on her face, "That poor pizza and cinnamon roll didn't deserve such disrespect!"

Ainz plopped on the sofa, "Are you kidding me?"

"Why would I be kidding about this?!"

"He did that to the cinnamon roll?" Albedo asked.

"Yes!"

Albedo gasped, "How could he…"

Ainz looked at Albedo in utter confusion, "A-Albedo…?"

"A cinnamon roll is supposed to be eaten slowly, savoring every piece of the roll, eating it from the crispy outside to the sweet insides. To eat it from the _bottom…_"

"I know, right?!"

In the end, they started to talk about the other atrocities Demiurge had committed to the culinary world in order to extract information from Tiamat.

Ainz shook his head.

'_I don't get it.'_

* * *

**A/N: The omake was highly inspired by "It's Time for Interrogation, Princess!" manga. Please give that a read. It's super funny.**

**Hackslashbash: That kid may or may not be important in the future. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

**Chapter 26 is out on discord!**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**ector **T**ries **T**o **P**ivot **S**tuff (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**addy **i**s **s**o **c**raving **o**range**r**efreshing **d**rink** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	24. CHAPTER 24: Worrisome Encounter

**A/N: Thank you Razel-Treasure and I AM THE STRING CUTTER for beta-ing this chapter**

**Moar A/N:**

**First of all, I would like to thank everyone for your inspiring patience, support, and not giving up on the story. These past few months have been crazy for both me and_ hackslashbash_ that was why we don't have as much time to write as we used to. Unfortunately, I am not a fortune teller (_pun intended_) and therefore I cannot predict what will happen in the future, but at least we can tell you this; We promise to finish it.**

**Fanfiction has always, and always will be a way to relieve stress, a way to pass time, a place where we could have fun. But in life, there are things that are far more important, and for me that would me my personal life and career. With the way things had been going, I do not see myself updating as frequently as I have been in the past. Even now, we are progressing at a snail pace compared to the rabbit pace we were working at before. But you can all safely assume that we are still working on it.**

**If after reading this you decided that an update or two every few months or so is too long for you to wait, then I completely understand and I thank you all so _so_ much for sticking with the story for as long as you have. Once again, thank you for being the best and the most supportive readers these authors could ever ask for, and I hope you all would continue to enjoy reading the story as much as we love writing them.**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal**

**Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth**

**Chapter VI: The Fallen**

The Dragon had become a threat.

Whispers of a dragon with impenetrable scales drifted throughout the Nine Realms.

The Dragon grew and grew and grew. With each passing day, the children of Man grew ever more terrified, for not once had the Dragon bled. If they were to leave it be, it could one day threaten the realms of mortals.

Especially on the _hunt_.

The hunt was a custom universal to all Nine Worlds; a trial of combat to prove martial valor. A simple competition amongst mortals and divinity alike. If they succeeded in reaching the top, they were worshipped as the Strongest within their home world.

A Champion.

That was until a hundred years ago, when the monsters decided to join in.

Monsters with strange powers and skills were easily stronger than most humans, easily slotting themselves through the ranks.

_Their _ranks.

The tipping point for the mortals was when the Dragon had defeated their strongest one in battle. A gallant White Knight that was kind and strong.

A Paragon of light and virtue.

He was the first from the mortals to make the Dragon bleed.

But still, the Dragon defeated him with devious means.

They were filled with rage and sorrow for the White Knight that they decided to take matters into their own hands

Conspiring with the elves, the mortals asked for their guilds to come help slay the Dragon before it was too late. They feared that the Dragon's strength would wax even greater if it left untouched.

If their strongest could not even kill it, then how could they?

And so their plotting began.

During the night, the Dragon was ambushed, forced into a brutal and long fight.

Though her tough scales were nigh impenetrable, they could only do so much. It was a battle that none of them would ever forget. Her fighting prowess had earned the Dragon the moniker, "The Weakest Dragon in Yggdrasil." for she could not even kill a fraction of the humans in battle.

It was the day where "Tiamat" had fallen.

* * *

**Chapter 24: Worrisome Encounter**

* * *

"The King has requested an audience with you, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat looked at the Warrior-Captain with widened eyes, she didn't expect that the King of the Kingdom itself would want to meet with her.

Why? What exactly did she do to gain his attention?

'_Well, I guess it makes sense that he wants to know more about a new Adamantite adventurer...Anyways! That doesn't matter right now.'_

Tiamat turned her attention back towards the growing crowd that was circling around Gazef and his troops who were standing outside the guild doors.

The people who had been observing the whole scene could hear everything. There was no way she was escaping this situation.

If she accepted, that would mean she would be breaking one of the most important guild rules; adventurers were not allowed to involve themselves in politics. It was fairly likely that the King was going to ask for some kind of favor from her. Why else would he invite her to the castle?

However, if she refused, it could be considered as an act of blatant disrespect against the ruler of the Kingdom. Needless to say, that would come with its own problems.

Tiamat sighed, pinching her nose with her fingers. _'*** it, this is why I hate politics…'_

There must have been a reason why the Warrior-Captain chose to look for her in public, and a reason that even Tiamat could think of was _public pressure_.

Tiamat clicked her tongue in annoyance. If she refused the Warrior-Captain's invitation right now, the citizens themselves would turn on her, which was far more dangerous than drawing the wrath of the royal family.

Afterall, the nation was built on the back of its citizens. Even though the royalty could deceive their citizens, it was much easier to manipulate the commoners into believing something that already existed instead of circulating new gossip. In this case, her rebelliousness if she chose to refuse the Warrior-Captain's offer.

If she were a normal adventurer, then going to the Kingdom to meet the King would probably be the best thing that would ever happen to her in her life. However, Tiamat knew she was far from normal. Either way, the only reason she was being invited was definitely because they wanted something from her.

The first reason that came to mind was Pentakrisis.

Would the King himself order her to give him up? If he did, then what was she supposed to do? Obviously, she would refuse but then she might incur the wrath of the royal family.

The worst scenario that came to mind was them taking either Pentakrisis or Yuri away from her, something she would not allow.

She thought back to the look that the head of the Carne Village had in his eyes when he looked at Gazef Stronoff who had personally come to their village to save them.

The people here had the same look as he did.

The look of awe and sheer respect.

To them, Gazef Stronoff was their hero, someone they looked up to.

'_How cunning…'_ she thought to herself.

Judging by the confident look of the Warrior-Captain, Tiamat speculated that he knew of the people's admiration for him. That was why instead of sending a formal invitation like that of Blue Rose, he had chosen to come down from the capital, _personally_.

"Hannah-sama," Gazef broke her out of her train of thoughts.

Tiamat sighed.

'_Guess I don't have much of a choice here…'_

On the bright side, she could find out what the King wanted when she got there. Should she draw their interest and bring Pentakrisis there too?

She smiled at Gazef Stronoff, a smile that he was all too familiar with as he was reminded of the esteemed butler a certain lady had by her side in that outskirt village. A _threatening_ smile.

"I understand, then I'll go to the Capital with Pentakrisis. The journey won't take long if I ride on him. I will see you there, Warrior Captain-san."

"I would have to reject that proposal, Hannah-sama," Gazef immediately replied, his eyes hardening. "To bring a dragon to the capital would be considered a threat. I would prefer if you use the carriage that the King himself has already prepared."

The Dragoness's eyes shifted to look at the carriage behind Gazef Stronoff once he had said his piece. The whispers of the crowd around them rapidly grew in volume.

It seemed that they were shocked that the King was being so hospitable towards her, a newly rising Adventurer, and were wondering what she had done to warrant such treatment.

The carriage was in an entirely different league compared to the usual carriages she saw clacking around in E-Rantel. Instead of wood, the white carriage was intricately detailed with golden decor. Moreover, it had the symbol of the royal family engraved in the door, signalling that it was royal property.

'_So wait, they don't want Pentakrisis?'_ she mulled inwardly, _'Perhaps, Yuri…?'_

The Dragoness shifted her gaze to the Dullahan who was standing next to her, her gaze filled with worry.

'_Then laying another trap…'_

Tiamat nodded, "I understand. Then shall we go, Lily?"

"Yes, Hannah-sama," Yuri replied.

"Hannah-sama, this is…"

She whipped her head back towards the Warrior Captain in shock, _'He didn't know about Yuri?'_

But she expertly hid her surprised expression and turned it into a smile, "Ah, this is Lily, Warrior Captain-san, my disciple."

'_Good job me!'_

For some reason, the Warrior-Captain looked like he was suppressing a chuckle.

"I see. I'm afraid your disciple won't come with us today, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat looked at him confusedly, "Why is that?"

"The King was very specific with his invitation. He had asked for _you_, Hannah-sama, and no one else. I apologize, but I don't think Lily-san will be given a pass through the castle's gates."

"Is it just me that's coming to the Capital then?"

"Yes."

Tiamat froze, her eyes widening at the news. That would mean she would be completely alone in the Capital. Not even Pentakrisis would be there to accompany her.

What if this was their plan to seperate them?

Did the Kingdom perhaps know who she really was?

That could very well be a possibility; since Gazef Stronoff was known to be loyal to his King, he could've told the King everything he knew about her.

Yuri had wrapped her fingers around hers, and Tiamat realized she was shaking.

"Should we run, Hannah-sama?" Yuri questioned, noticing the grim look on the Dragoness's face.

Tiamat couldn't help but be reminded of that cursed foreign mansion where she was _alonealonealone_ with no one to help her.

"I think it would be best if you joined us, Hannah-sama," Gazef said in a tone that left no room for argument.

She whimpered unwillingly, trying to keep her heart rate steady along with her breathing, but the fear within her grew as she was reminded of the past.

The Dragoness had heard stories about the nobles of the country, and her previous quest had confirmed everything she needed to know, or at least about one of them in particular. She wanted to back away and just leave; she had no desire to deal with the political nonsense of the country.

All she wanted was to peacefully live her daily life with the people of Nazarick and make Ainz's dream come true.

And that was the thing, the only information she had regarding the Royal family and Nobles of this country were mentions of how corrupt they were, which did nothing to help her first impression of them. Especially the fact that after Demiurge had interrogated the members of the Sunlight Scripture, he had told her that Gazef's assassination was supported by a number of nobles within the country.

Tiamat took a deep breath.

'_Calm down, and think properly.'_

If these guys really wanted to meet her or kill her in the first place, they would have already tried.

She then remembered that Pluton had actually sent someone to pump a syringe filled with charm potions inside her to sell her away and _breed_ her so that her offspring could be controlled and then take Pentakrisis for themselves.

Tiamat gripped Yuri's hand softly, telling her of how unsure she was of going to the capital all by herself. Yuri could only grit her teeth in reply.

Tiamat decided to contact her closest friend. Someone she could always rely on when she was completely lost.

_Beep Beep _[Yes? Is everything alright over there Tia?]

[Ainz, the Warrior-Captain guy from the Kingdom came ove—]

[Did he leak your secret? I knew it, we should've erased his memories like the other villagers. I'm coming over right now.] Tiamat could hear his voice seething even through『Message』.

[No!] the Dragoness exclaimed, [Well, I'm not sure yet, but he told me that I've been invited by the King to the castle. By myself.]

[Umu, Is that so? In that case, I doubt they would try to hurt you. However…] he trailed off.

[However what?]

[I don't feel comfortable with leaving you there by yourself… it would be safer if I came along.]

Tiamat widened her eyes at his suggestion. It was a good suggestion; however, she didn't think it was possible. [The Warrior-Captain said that only I could go. He even said I couldn't bring Yuri along.]

[***...this sounds more and more like a trap.] She heard Ainz sigh in the background.

[In that case, at least bring an Eight-Edged Assassin with you. I doubt most of the people of this world can see through their stealth abilities. In fact, I'm going to send one to you right now.] and with that he ended『Message』.

"Okay," she muttered, gripping Yuri's fingers tighter. "I'll go to the Capital with you Warrior Captain-san."

"M—Hannah-sam—!"

"Lily," Tiamat let go of Yuri's hand with a smile, and at that moment two beeps indicating 『Message』 rang inside of Yuri's head.

[Ainz suspects that this might be a trap, I will go to the castle as they want and you should go and stay with Ainz and Narberal. I'm afraid that once I leave something might happen to you.]

"Don't forget to submit the finished quest to the Guild, Lily."

"B-But Hannah-sama…"

Tiamat's smile widened, trying her best to reassure Yuri. "I'll be fine."

[Go now before it's too late. Ainz must be at the Golden Pavilion with Narberal.]

Yuri nodded and gave Tiamat's hand one last squeeze as a warning before entering the Guild hall.

Tiamat locked eyes with Gazef, "Let's go, Gazef-san."

Gazef, who had been watching their interaction in confusion, nodded. He waved for his men to move out after he opened the door of the carriage for her to enter.

Once she had sat down, Gazef closed the door before mounting his own horse. Tiamat looked out the window, watching as Yuri immediately ran towards the Golden Pavilion as soon as the carriage began to run its course.

Taking a deep breath to ease her nervousness, Tiamat could only wait for the Eight-Edged Assassin to arrive.

She could only hope that nothing would go wrong.

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

Gazef rode next to the carriage where Hannah-sama was sitting, and as they rode towards the Capital, his troops in front and behind the carriage, marching at the same pace as he continued observing her.

The red plush velvet pillows perfectly contrasted with the whiteness of her dress as she sat cross legged on the sofa, laying her elbows on one of the window sills to hold her chin up. Her staff laid horizontally across her lap.

She looked as if she was bored.

From the moment they left E-Rantel, it seemed that the Priestess was constantly looking out the window, as if she was searching for something.

To be honest, Gazef was really surprised at how compliant she was. He had half expected her to bolt out as soon as she saw him, or at least attempt to escape after she went inside the carriage.

After working as the King's personal guard, he had learned to see and observe from within. He knew how the delicately crafted words of nobles could turn into a sharp blade in an instant.

But the woman in front of him was very expressive compared to the people in the castle. He didn't miss that worried gaze of hers when he had asked her to go with him in the carriage instead of using her dragon.

He had a reason for that.

As Gazef was about to call out to her, she suddenly leaned out of the window excitedly, her hair sprawled outwards in the wind.

Her bright smile was so mesmerizing that the guard who was guarding the side of the window near her stumbled in his steps.

Suddenly, she turned to look at him with new found excitement, "Gazef-san, how long will it take to get to the Capital?"

"We will arrive in two to three days, if there's no disturbances of course."

"You're not stopping?"

"We will stop at night to rest, but after that we will continue straight to the Capital, Hannah-sama."

"I see, is it possible if we stop now? Just for a few minutes."

"It hasn't been a few minutes since—"

"Please Gazef-san," she paused before adding, "After this I will do as you ask, so just a few minutes, _please_..."

Gazef couldn't help but stare at her gem like eyes as she pleaded with him. He sighed, and gave in.

"Five minutes, that's it."

She smiled at him, "That's more than enough," she whispered as he signed for his troops to stop.

He checked the surroundings, keeping his eyes peeled for anything that stood out. He was accompanying an important guest afterall, but at the small giggle that woman had unknowingly let out at his behaviour, he knew he was being overly cautious.

Tiamat gripped the seats of the sofa as they skidded to a sudden stop.

'_That was uncomfortable…'_

The unexpected jolt of the carriage caused her neck to whip forward. She gripped the seat tighter when they made a sudden turn as her body hit the side of the carriage.

When they finally stopped, she heard the clops of a horse next to the carriage as someone opened the door for her.

"Thank you, Gazef-san."

Tiamat stretched her arms with a groan, her fingers throbbing painfully at how tightly she had gripped the seats. Even though the Royal Carriage looked fancy enough, it was old and very uncomfortable.

But that was not why she had asked Gazef to stop for a short rest. She eyed her surroundings before she headed out with 『Automatic Mapping』 towards the right side with mountains and forests.

'_Perfect.'_

"Gazef-san, I'm going to head over there. I'll be back in five minutes," she pointed to the forest to her right.

"Then I'll accompany you," he said with such resolve that it made her shift uncomfortably.

Tiamat looked at the forest where she had signalled the Eight-Edged Assassin to come for her. She had received a 『Message』 from Ainz just a few moments ago that the Eight-Edged Assassin had been following the carriage to make sure she could return to Nazarick if anything were to happen to her.

She had previously looked out the window to see it following from afar in order to avoid drawing attention to itself

"T-There's no need, Gazef-san! I can go by myself!"

If Gazef followed her to the forest, he would know.

"Even though we're on our way to the capital, it doesn't mean that this place is safe, Hannah-sama. As you might know, some people had been aiming for my neck recently. If I were to leave you alone, they might take advantage of the situation," he explained matter-of-factly.

Unfortunately for him, Tiamat couldn't say another word, instead making a sharp turn to look at him.

There was no way Gazef could be allowed to follow her to that forest.

She would do whatever she could to stop him, no matter what it took.

"Gazef-san, I need to..._relieve_ myself, I don't even have time to prepare to meet the King, surely you understand…" she looked away as her face started heating up.

She couldn't believe she said that to a man she didn't know.

"Be as it may, I will still accompany you, Hannah-sama!"

"Gazef, you idiot!" she screamed out loud, causing most of the troops in her vicinity to turn their heads towards the commotion, "I just want to go pee, leave me alone!"

Tiamat proceeded to dash into the forest, leaving Gazef alone to ponder on what she had just said.

One of his troops, the one that was closest to him, snickered at the outcome. "Seriously Warrior Captain-san, just how long has it been since you've been with a woman?"

Gazef bonked him in the head, "Shut it."

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

Tiamat ran deep inside the forest and once she was sure that no one had followed her, she finally stopped in her tracks and looked back

With her sharp sight she could see that just behind the undergrowth, a few meters away from the carriage and the troops, Gazef was waiting there with his arms folded across his chest.

She breathed a sigh of relief.

'_At least he's not following me, that would be really weird…'_

She didn't know if she could send a『Message』to the Eight Edged Assassin, so she could only hope that they saw her run into the forest.

Tiamat suddenly heard a small rustling on the branches of the trees above her, and when she looked up, her lips curved up in a grin as she saw the Eight Edged Assassin hiding in place.

"Lady Tiamat," it jumped down and greeted her.

The Dragoness couldn't help but to glomp the spider in front of her, "You found me, you actually found me!" she exclaimed happily.

Her heart leaped with joy at the familiar sight of the arachnoid assassin. At least she wasn't alone now. The fact that someone from Nazarick would be near her had calmed her strung-up nerves.

"I'm so happy you're finally here," she continued.

"Shall I proceed to kill everyone in our proximity?" it asked.

"_Don't_. Don't do that. They are important people from the Kingdom. If they go missing or dead, I will immediately become a suspect."

"However, Ainz-sama ordered me to bring you back to Nazarick, My Lady."

"Back home?" she asked.

Without her realizing, the spider had trembled happily when she called Nazarick home.

"Yes."

Tiamat stayed silent for a while. "I can't just leave…"

"Then what shall we do, My Lady?"

The Dragoness pondered for a while, "Perhaps you could—"

With her keen ears, Tiamat could hear the sound of rustling grass as it was being stepped on. Someone was following her.

She didn't have much time.

"Listen carefully, okay? I need you to do this..."

The assassin nodded.

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

Gazef lifted a branch that was blocking him to where he thought the Priestess had gone to.

Five minutes were almost up, yet she still hadn't made her way outside of the forest. That was why he had no choice but to follow suit behind her.

He could only hope that she had finished her...business. It would be awkward if he walked in on her in the middle of it.

"Gazef-san?" a voice sounded from his left, startling him.

When he shifted his gaze, he saw her standing right beside him, causing cold sweat to run over his entire body.

He didn't sense her coming at all.

The strongest man in the Kingdom couldn't help but smile as the corners of his mouth lifted ever so slightly.

"Hannah-sama," he cleared his throat, "Are you ready to continue?"

"Yes, Gazef-san. Shall we return to the carriage?" she asked.

He made way for her to walk in front of him, and as she did so, he followed a few steps behind her.

Once they were out of the forest, his troops who were resting immediately put on their helmets and climbed atop their horses, preparing for the long journey once more.

Gazef quickened his pace so he could open the door to the carriage, allowing her to enter.

Afterall, the highest level of courtesy was expected from the King's guard himself.

The silver haired Priestess entered the carriage with a nod, thanking him as she does so.

However, as soon as she stepped on the steps leading into the carriage, Gazef noticed that the carriage was slightly tilted, as if she was heavier than before.

Gazef looked around the vicinity, was it perhaps the wind?

"We're ready Captain!" one of his man bellowed, disrupting him from his thought process as he responded with a nod.

Convincing himself that it was nothing, Gazef climbed on his horse and ordered his men to continue to the Capital.

If only he had checked what was under the carriage, he would have seen a bizarre shadow on the ground that disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Of course, there was no way the assassin would allow him to see even its shadow.

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

It had been a few hours since she re-entered the carriage.

Since she knew that the eight-edged assassin had suspended itself under the carriage, she could finally breathe a little easier.

She has been leaning against the right window, looking outside as the scenery began to change slightly, and Tiamat could only sigh.

The journey was taking way too long.

If it was just her and Taki, she would've arrived in the capital in less than a couple of hours, all while gazing at the beautiful scenery below them.

There was not much she could see from the windows of a carriage.

Even though the entire ride had been quiet and smooth, the view was less spectacular than what she usually saw with Pentakrisis.

It was still a beautiful sight to behold. The snowy peaks of the mountains, the tranquil rivers, and the deep forest combined to form an unforgettable vista.

Yet despite the vast wilds around her, she couldn't help but feel as if she was trapped between oaken doors and walls. When she flew in the skies she felt free, like she could do anything.

Gazef suddenly broke her out of her melancholic thoughts.

"Hannah-sama, we will stop at a nearby village for the night."

Tiamat only nodded as she looked out the window for the thousandth time that day. The view from outside the window couldn't be compared to what she could see when she flew with Taki: Thousands upon thousands of man-made lights entwined with the natural twinkle of the stars, creating an unparalleled sight from the skies

The feeling of the wind caressing her skin and blowing back her hair, the early morning light and the bleeding sun as it set, and the feeling of the cold mist around her fingers.

The whole experience could be summed up in one word.

Liberating.

'_That's right…'_ she sighed contentedly with her eyes closed, her head resting against the window pane as she recalled the experience she had when she first arrived in the New World, smiling as she remembered the feeling of the clouds high up in the sky.

How she longed to soar out of reach once more.

Another hour passed as the orange sky turned a deep purple as the day ran its course.

Even though she only intended to rest her eyes for only a short while, she ended up falling into a deep sleep.

Her body was sprawled out in the carriage while her legs remained glued to the ground, her head supported by her hand that served as a makeshift pillow.

But then she was jolted awake when the carriage jerked once again to a stop.

Two knocks could be heard just outside the glass window.

Tiamat opened her bleary eyes to see that Gazef was the one who knocked. She immediately got up and opened the door.

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry to have disturbed your sleep, Hannah-sama. I only want to inform you that we have arrived for the night. We will continue on after dawn, is that alright with you?"

"Of course, but…" Tiamat looked at her surroundings.

The moonlight was starting to rise from the east as its faint light filtered through the leaves and cast an eerie glow on the area. The chirping of crickets drowned out all other sounds as Gazef's troops started to prepare to rest for the night.

"Please follow me then, Hannah-sama," Gazef said once he had received her confirmation, and with his help, Tiamat stepped down from the carriage with her staff in hand, subtly motioning for the Eight Edged Assassin to follow.

Gazef took the lead as Tiamat and the Assassin followed, walking out of the forest to a nearby town. He entered what appeared to be a small Inn, and as Tiamat was about to enter as well, the Eight-Edged Assassin whispered,

"Be careful My Lady. It would be difficult to guard from attacks in a crowded area."

"Don't worry about it," Tiamat quietly reassured her bodyguard before catching up with Gazef.

As she followed the Warrior Captain into the Inn, her nose was instantly flooded by the scent of various meals and drinks being prepared. Underneath that smell, Tiamat could pick up the odor of the old rusty wood the floorboards and walls were made of. The darkness of the night enveloped the corners of the Inn, and only the only source of light was the dim yellow glow produced by oil lamps scattered around on top of tables, placed on walls, and hanging from the ceiling.

Her ears picked up the distinct chatter of people talking about their day. Woodcutters talked about the number of trees they had cut down, while farmers complained about how the Kingdom taxes were too high.

Gazef took the initiative. His footsteps made the floorboards creak as his armored boots crashed against them.

As soon as they walked into the rustic establishment, all eyes were immediately set on him. The rustle and bustle of the Inn had suddenly turned quiet and the light atmosphere gave way to tension.

Tiamat looked at them warily, as millions of questions ran through her head.

Why were they staring? Were they standing out too much?

But as soon as she went inside the halls, her sense of smell caught a whiff of something.

However, Gazef remained undeterred by the crowd's stare and walked straight to the man behind the bar.

A short burly man with arms as thick as tree trunks and a belly too round to seem fit stood behind the bar counter. His balding head shone brightly against the light produced by the lamps while his massive beard covered most of his lower face. He stood straight with a beer mug in one hand and a rag in the other, cleaning the mug.

"Warrior Captain, Gazef Stronoff! What can I do for you?" the man who seemed to be the innkeeper asked.

"I need your best room for the lady."

"The lady?" The innkeeper looked behind him to see Tiamat who was hiding behind Gazef's muscular figure.

Even though the beauty was being escorted by the Strongest Man in the Kingdom, she had looked away, staring at one of his guests table with interest.

"I understand, Warrior Captain, for how many nights?" he asked.

"Just one."

"That will be three silver coins."

Gazef put the silver coins on the wooden table, and proceeded to walk to the stairs right next to the bar.

However, when he looked back, he noticed that the Priestess wasn't following him.

"Hannah-sama," he called out, breaking her out of her stupor.

"Yes?" Tiamat looked up.

"You should go get some rest in this room here. We'll be standing guard nearby."

"Ah! Right, rest," Tiamat quickly walked over to where he was standing.

She followed Gazef and his two guards through the hallway, her silent steps contrasting against the crashing of metallic greaves.

Finally, Gazef stopped in front of a wooden door and opened it using the key the innkeeper had given him earlier.

"Please come in, Hannah-sama," he mentioned, standing to the side of the door to let her in.

Tiamat glanced at the Warrior-Captain with a wary glint in her eyes and observed the room from outside while urging the Eight-Edged Assassin to enter into the room first to check.

The modest room was outfitted with a set of simple wooden furniture: a bed, a table, a chair, along with a window that allowed residents to gaze outside. To the side of the room she saw a door that she presumed led to the bathroom.

From the corner of her vision, the Eight Edged Assassin took his place at the ceiling, signalling that he had confirmed it was safe for Tiamat to enter.

"This will be your room for the night," Gazef explained. "My men will take shifts guarding you just outside the door."

The two guards who had been following her since she exited the carriage saluted, their left hand on their chest.

"If you need anything, please don't hesitate to ask for our help, Hannah-sama," one of them said.

"Then, where will you be resting?" Tiamat asked curiously.

"You don't have to worry about us, Hannah-sama," Gazef swiftly answered.

A level of professionalism needed to be maintained, and this fact was especially true for Gazef Stronoff and his troops who had come from humble upbringings.

They were always scrutinized by the nobility at the Royal Court, and so to do their jobs as best as they could without disturbing their honored guest would be one of their responsibilities.

All they needed to do was to make sure that the Silver Priestess was comfortable and protected.

Tiamat finally entered, and Gazef handed her the keys to her room.

"Good night, Hannah-sama," with that he closed the door, leaving Tiamat alone with the Eight-Edged Assassin and the two guards who were guarding her outside the door.

The Dragoness put the key in the keyhole, twisting it to the right to lock it in place, and then pulled out scrolls of『Silence』 from her inventory. She activated the scrolls, preventing sound from escaping the room, and casted『Aegis』as well just in case.

"Your commands, Lady Tiamat?" the spider on the ceiling asked.

Tiamat looked at the spider, tilting her head upwards. "Are you hungry?" she asked.

"I have no need to eat My Lady. Lord Ainz had provided me with a『Ring of Sustenance』so I may properly guard you."

"Ah, I see. I guess Momo-chan has a point there…" Tiamat pondered with her hand on her chin.

It would be difficult for the Assassin to eat in such a crowded area. Even if he were invisible, the risk of someone noticing food mysteriously disappearing could not be overlooked.

"In that case, please stay here," Tiamat decided.

"My Lady! How can I protect you from this room?" the arachnoid protested.

"Don't worry about it! I'll be perfectly fine. After all," Tiamat put an arm on her bicep, "I can definitely take a hit or two!"

"Then I shall remain here and stand guard against anyone who dares to try to harm you, My Lady," the Assassin finally conceded.

"Awesome! I'll see you in a bit then!" Tiamat waved to the Eight-Edged Assassin as it turned invisible and returned to its place on the ceiling, filled with the motivation to stay vigilant as he was now guarding a Supreme Being.

After ensuring that the Assassin was fully cloaked, Tiamat opened the door.

Immediately, the two guards stood to attention.

Both of them were wearing the light armor of the Warrior's Band and bore a broadsword on their hips. Their expressions conveyed the utmost seriousness as they beheld their charge.

"Is there anything we can help you with, Hannah-sama?" one of them asked.

She looked at them worryingly. Would they refuse her request?

"I want to go down to eat dinner, is that okay?" she asked.

The one on the left immediately lowered his head, startling the Dragoness slightly, while making the arachnoid behind her bristle uncomfortably. "Then I will ask the innkeeper to bring something to your room at once."

Tiamat lifted both of her hands up to reject the idea, "No, that's alright. I'll just go downstairs to eat," she said while exiting the door and locking it behind her. The Assassin quickly slipped through to her side as she closed the door.

"But, Hannah-sama—"

"Did the Warrior-Captain order that I shall remain locked in until tomorrow morning? I think this would be alright," she tried to reason with them.

Sitting in the room with nearly nothing to do had been incredibly boring, and she couldn't forget that amazing scent.

"But the food of this inn is not fit for someone of your stature," the other guard replied back.

"B-But, it smells so delicious, plus I didn't get to eat anything since morning…" she cast her eyes downwards.

Her stomach growled as it ached, before stopping and continuing once again. She knew that its cries would not be answered as the growls returned a few moments later.

She realized that ever since she had arrived in the New World, her hunger was almost insatiable.

It was as if her stomach was a black hole that devoured everything she put near her mouth. Her new body constantly demanded more food as if to compensate for something.

Earlier, she had drank a ridiculous amount of water, which calmed her stomach down for a while, only for the dull pain of hunger to return with a vengeance, as if to punish her for fooling it into thinking it was being fed. She tried to sleep, but she was always awoken by the dull pain and reminded of that delicious smell.

Perhaps she should've listened to Ainz when he told her that she should always keep a 『Ring of Sustenance』in her inventory.

Regardless, Tiamat was someone who was familiar with hunger since she had come from a disadvantaged background. She had eaten things that no human should be forced to put into their bodies out of hunger. Orphans like her had no choice, especially if they had no idea where their next meal would come from.

Back on Earth, she had been forced to become creative in coming up with ways to eat before getting that job at the bakery. Some ideas were good, and some are bad, but she doesn't care about the outcome. All she wanted was to stem the pain of starvation.

She was used to begging, stealing, and asking before she finally _earn_. She had been forced to resort to all possible ways of getting food, not just for herself, but also for the children she took care of.

She felt lucky that food was so plentiful in the New World. Tiamat appreciated every spoonful of nourishment even if she ate like a medieval barbarian.

She was fortunate.

The two guards looked at the woman in front of them with a flabbergasted expression. They had never expected her to beg to be allowed to have dinner. They thought she would just order them around like every other noble girl in the Kingdom.

One of them nodded in confirmation without even realizing, and Tiamat happily shook his hand.

"Thank you! Would you like to join me for dinner?" she asked.

The guard's comrade looked at his friend in shock, frantically gesturing for his friend to reject the Priestess's proposal. They were supposed to provide for the Priestess, not the other way around.

The guard who had been nudging his friend cleared his throat, "There's no need for you to worry about us, Hannah-sama. If you want to head downstairs, we will accompany you."

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

"Didja see that gal? She sure was a real looker!"

"By the gods, I have never seen such a fine ***!" another man drunkenly slurred.

"Watch your mouth, you idiot! She came here with the Warrior Captain!" a friend panickedly whispered to the man.

"L—_burp _Like I care! That bastard should ju-_burp _just shove a sword up his ***," the man said as he shoved his friend away.

At that moment, the sound of footsteps were heard from the second floor as the woman they were talking about descended from the stairs as they all turned their heads to gape in silence.

They couldn't deny that the woman was gorgeous.

Her figure was impeccable, a decanter shaped waist that was highlighted by her white dress. Her complexion was a healthy pink, and emphasized her vitality. It was as if the gods had spend most of their time perfecting the woman in front of them instead of fulfilling their duties.

When they looked at her face, they realized that she must be a foreigner, or at least have come from another realm.

Her eyebrows arched slightly as she saw them staring at her. Some yelped at being caught and immediately looked away, while others continued staring as if entranced. Her luminous amethyst eyes slowly blinked once.

As her enticing, gem like eyes stared back at them, she broke into a smile that lit up the room, jolting them like lightning when they saw that powerful smile towards them.

"Good evening," she greeted them, her voice as sweet as any songbird.

Filed to perfection, her fingernails ran through her silver hair as she held up to maneuver her way around the uneven staircase. Spools of it plunged around her shoulders, hiding her neck.

When she walked past them to an empty table, an aroma redolent of cinnamon and meadow-fresh mint lingered in their thoughts.

But that was all she was in their eyes: _beautiful_.

They had all heard the rumors that had been spreading around.

Her kindness and gentle smiles, as well as the dirtiness within.

To use her body to become an Adamantite adventurer, a hero sought out by many. To seduce the guild leader himself to rise through the ranks where mostly male adventurers thrived.

No matter how many times they looked at the situation, they still found it impossible.

Even Blue Rose could only rise through Adamantite as a group of six. But somehow, she managed to rise to Adamantite alone. She probably didn't even have to do any work herself; after all, why would she need to when she had a _dragon_?

There wasn't a single muscle in her body, her hands lacked the roughness of warriors, and they knew she was lying about being a humble priestess.

That was because no priestess would be able to afford what she was wearing.

A dress of snow white that clinged to her every curve, putting her ***ets as a woman on display for the entire world.

The clothing of a whore.

Even more infuriating was how clean that dress was. Despite being such a bright white, they couldn't find the smallest speck of dirt on it. Obviously, this was further evidence that proved she didn't do her quests on her own.

Their gazes turned into that of a poisonous snake's, looking at her with disdain.

"Excuse me," she raised her hand to call for the innkeeper, but even he turned a blind eye to her.

More than a little annoyed with the disrespect the Priestess was being treated with despite showing nothing but kindness to them, the guard immediately walked over to the bar where the innkeeper was cleaning a gl***.

"Excuse me, but I believe that you have a customer."

The innkeeper glanced down at the guard's worn sheathed sword and grudgingly put down the gl*** he was cleaning before walking over to the Priestess.

The guard swiftly returned, "Your dinner will be here in a few moments, Hannah-sama."

"Thank you!" she smiled at them: a charming, seductive smile. Both of her hands were clasped behind her back as she stretched her back by standing on her toes.

Her dress rode up ever so slightly and revealed her ankles. To her, it was a perfectly normal action as she fantasized about what she would be eating. To everybody else, her beauty seemed even more out of the world and straight from a fictional tale.

The surrounding patrons could immediately see in the warriors' gazes that they were absolutely smitten.

A few tables away, sat the drunk man, who had pushed his friend off his chair, along with his friends. They observed the entire situation, snickering as if they were betting on an outcome.

The drunk man eventually gathered the courage to stand up from his chair, his body struggling to remain balanced, as if he was experiencing some sort of an out of body experience. His legs wobbled as they refused to synchronize with his arms; it was clear to everyone that he was extremely intoxicated.

He walked down towards her table, swaying left and right. The two knights behind her immediately moved forward to stop him.

"Move outta mah way," The man slurred, his sentence barely understandable as his glossy eyes moved towards the woman sitting at the table.

"You're drunk," the knight replied as gently as he could. Even though they were ***igned to protect the Adamantite hero, they still couldn't raise their hands against a simple civilian.

One look at the man and they knew he was a drunkard, plain and simple. His breakfast was mead with a rum chaser. He was a man who would be slurring his words by lunchtime and p***ed out drunk in the afternoon. What little money he could earn was used to pay for the booze he craved daily.

Even now he was clutching an almost empty mug of beer in his right hand. The remaining beer sloshed around in the cup as he walked.

"I just want to take a closer look at the pretty lady, out of my way, army dog!" he angrily shouted as the effects of the alcohol began to give way to rage.

Geffrey had been inebriated every day of his life for the past twenty years or so. He had not worked on his field for years, and was getting worse at hiding his bad habits. He had drunk more than usual this day, and he could only hoped that the rosiness of his cheeks didn't give him away.

Every morning, he added some mead to his drink so that he could stay desensitized throughout the day while planning how he'd become paralytic by evening.

He did this every day, often waking in the morning facedown in a cold pile of vomit. Often times, he woke up not knowing where he was.

When his ex-wife called him a drunkard, he called her a bitch.

Perhaps that was why his wife ran away from him. It was either that or the repeated beatings.

In any case, he had never heard of her ever since.

But that didn't matter right now.

Right now, he wanted to take a closer look at the so-called astounding beauty, the Saint of E-Rantel herself.

Who knew? Perhaps her beauty could fill the emptiness in his heart.

"If you continue this, I'm afraid I will have to take action," the warrior warned.

"Screw you! I just wanted a look, is that so wrong, huh?!" His foul breath erased all doubts regarding how intoxicated he actually was. Tiamat took a deep breath out, preparing mentally for what was about to happen.

"It's alright," her voice was smooth and clear, yet quiet and powerful: soothing in its own peculiar way.

The drunken man pushed the warrior away and slumped onto the empty chair next to the Priestess.

As he ogled the Priestess's face, his throat felt drier than the baked summer earth outside.

"By the gods, you're beautiful." he spoke unexpectedly clear and coherent, far raspier than usual.

"Trust me, I'm not," she replied humbly. "There are a lot of people much more beautiful than I am."

The man scooted closer to her, to the extent that one of the warriors put his hand on the drunken man's shoulder, "You smell good," he paused to draw in her scent, "Really good."

His eyes stared intently at her, examining every inch of her skin: surveying her. Slowly he reached forward and sniffed the long strands of her hair. "Ya know, I could see that you try to look like a good girl, but that probably ain't true, isn't it?"

Tiamat said nothing.

"You slept with the guild leader of E-Rantel didn't ya?" he grinned, pulling the strands of her hair so she would get closer to him. "Why don't you do me too, girl?"

The woman in front of him remained quiet as she locked her unnatural purple eyes to his plain brown ones.

"Oi, what are you doing you old man? Let her go!"

The Priestess simply looked at the knight, her eyes telling them to simply let the drunken man be.

"Heh," he sneered. "Afterall, it was your dragon who did all the Adamantite quests for you right? Must've been easy owning such a powerful creature. Bet you've slept with the beast too," he cackled.

The man looked at the Priestess who still hadn't said a single thing. Despite her silence, he could clearly see the pity from her open expression.

He hated that.

He let go of her hair, and laid back in his seat, a cruel and mocking smile on his lips.

"I bet if I had a dragon, I could easily become an Adamantite adventurer too!" he exclaimed to her, and was pleased to see her eyes widen slightly.

He knew he had hit a nerve.

"Ya know that the one who should have that plate is your dragon right? Not you," he continued mocking her. "Everyone knows that you don't deserve to have _that_," he pointed at her adventurer plate.

The woman could only bite her lips in silence, while he basked in the attention he had gathered at the inn.

His uneven teeth were shown as he smiled his crooked smile, getting ecstatic from the feeling of finally humiliating someone that was not him.

"You—" the knight started to raise his sword, but as soon as he did, the Priestess uttered a single sentence.

"Do you mean it?"

The drunken man, who didn't expect that response, could only respond with surprise. "Ha?"

"Do you mean what you said, about you becoming an adventurer if you had a dragon?"

The man cackled, "Of course! As the ruler of the strongest being in the world, I bet it would be super easy to become Adamantite in a flash!"

The girl suddenly grasped his hand, and shifted closer to him, an act that surprised the drunken man.

"_My savior!_"

"W-What?!"

"I have three Frost Dragons who just laze around all day back home, and all they ever do is eat and sleep. They're not even that powerful, so why do I even have to put with them?! Since you said that you're willing to become an adventurer if you have a dragon, then please, take one of them for me!" the woman rambled as the man's head spun in confusion.

"HAA?!" the man screeched in disbelief, as the rest of the people at the inn gasped at what she said.

"I have three frost dragons who are just lazing around at home, they—"

"I heard ya the first time, ya don't gotta repeat what you said!" he roared, and forcefully pulled his hand away from her grip.

"Where's your house? Should I send it to you now? Never mind, I need to see the King at the Capital first and then say goodbye to one of them. Can I choose which one, or do you want to choose? After I finish my business at the Capital, I'll deliver the dragon to you. Oh! And there's no need for you to pay me," she cheerfully ignored him and continued her insane chatter.

"You're insane! Dragons are powerful creatures. You're lucky enough if you could slay them, but to tame them is something out of the question! And you have four, _four_!" he immediately sobered up.

"So?" she asked innocently, "Four is way too much for an Adamantite quest, and plus, people already talk about me when I use one. Imagine if I used all four…"

The drunken man couldn't come up with a reply.

Suddenly, the innkeeper put the Priestess's meal on the table.

"Here ya go, enjoy," the man said enthusiastically.

Tiamat looked at the food served in front of her, the humblest of meals she had ever had since she came into the New World.

A bowl of soup, a pot of beans, and a piece of bread.

She smiled at the innkeeper, "Thank you!"

"Oi," the drunken man interjected, annoyed that she seemed to be ignoring him, "Didn't you just think in your head that this kind of food wasn't fit for someone like you?"

There was no way that she was smiling because the food was good, especially since she looked like someone accustomed to eating the fare of nobles. Someone like her was undoubtedly used to faking her smiles for the crowds, all while secretly mocking them in her heart.

What a hypocrite.

Tiamat looked at him, her eyes scrunched together in confusion, "What do you mean?"

He clicked his tongue, "Don't you have eyes, woman?! It's just some shitty soup served with a piece of bread."

"Ah, you think so? Smells delicious to me," she nonchalantly replied as she clasped her hands together, her delicate fingers interlocking with one another as she lowered her head.

"What are you doing?"

The girl didn't reply.

"Oi, are you ignoring me now?!"

She silently raised her fingers to her lips, "I'm saying grace."

"What—?"

Her eyes remained closed for a few more moments before she finally raised her head.

"It's my way of saying thank you for the food being provided for me."

"Why?"

"Hm, well…" she lifted her head up to look at the ceiling, "It's kind of hard to explain, but it's not everyday that you get to eat warm, delicious food. So I thanked the divine for providing me with this gift."

"But it's not the divine who provides this for you. You bought this with _your_ money."

"Not necessarily. Countless people must have worked hard in putting this food on the table right? From the farmer to the innkeeper, their hands worked tirelessly to provide this. I was thanking the divine for protecting these people. Without them, there wouldn't be any food on the table, right?" she smiled at him.

"You…" the man was at a loss for words.

The woman in front of him was different from what he heard.

He had heard the rumors of her being a seductress to her being a noble of the highest degree. But the person in front of him was none of those.

She had a total of four dragons, but she only used one.

She dressed so lightly that she could be considered a lowly escort, but the way she carried herself spoke of confidence and dignity.

She had prayed to the divine, thankful for the _simple_ food served in front of her.

This unconventional woman was nothing like the gossips said, and it annoyed him tremendously.

As she was about to bring the spoon up from the bowl, she heard him muttering to himself, "Yes?" she asked.

Finding that he could not find anything more to say, he quietly got up from his chair and left.

He had some thinking to do.

"Oh! Do you still want the Frost Dragon?"

'_Dammit Woman!'_

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

When Tiamat returned to her room, she immediately sat down to obsessively scrub her hair clean from the drunkard's touch.

His touch burned, hurt even, and she could still feel his hand pulling on it even now. Although she had wanted to shoo the man away, the look in his eyes stopped her.

Desperate, without an ounce of hope for the future.

A man who had lost everything to his vices and knew it.

To be perfectly honest, she pitied him. Tiamat couldn't bring herself to slap his hand away knowing that such a simple gesture would invariably lead to pain and misunderstanding.

She had tried her best to put on a friendly smile, but she felt like her mannerisms and feelings contradicted each other so much that she ended up feeling like a psychopath.

That was why she held it in, as she usually did.

She noticed that her skin was beginning to sting, and looked down; she had rubbed her skin to the point where it had become raw and pink.

Sighing, Tiamat fell back first onto the bed, preparing to sleep, too tired to change back to her original form, but everytime she turned her eyes to the ceiling, all she could see was the large arachnoid that was looming above her.

Its eyes followed her every move, to the point where it was getting a bit uncomfortable. What if she opened her mouth while she slept, or she drooled? Her pride as a Supreme Being would disintegrate into dust.

"Do you really have to stick yourself to the ceiling like that?" she asked in a desperate bid to politely get the spider to move.

"Yes, My Lady. My efficiency increases if I'm in high places."

"I see…"

Tiamat threw the bed cover over herself and turned to her side so she didn't have to look at the ceiling, but the spider's intense eyes burned into the side of her head.

As she tried her best to focus on sleeping, her subconscious kept registering the arachnoid in her peripheral vision and instinctually forced her mind into a defensive state.

Tiamat sighed, deciding to walk a bit outside to burn away her excess energy. Maybe she could even play with Pentakrisis for a while and go to sleep later.

"Come down, let's go outside," she said as the spider leapt down from the ceiling, silently landing on his feet and following the Dragoness outside.

"Where are we going, My Lady?"

"Let's play with Taki for a bit," she smiled at the spider, feeling giddy about meeting with Pentakrisis. She didn't even get to say goodbye to him before Gazef dragged her off into a carriage.

With her『Auto-Mapping』, she quickly spotted a small patch of empty land at the edge of the village.

'_Takiiiiii, meet me at this empty spot near the village. Oh! And make sure that nobody's around before you land. Love you!'_

'_Yes Master!' _she could almost hear his tail wagging through the link.

After a few minutes, she received a reply.

'_There are no humans around, master,' _a happy growl slipping into his voice.

Tiamat skipped for a bit before she unlocked her door, only to find that the two guards were still standing guard outside the door.

"Hannah-sama, is there anything you need?" one of them asked.

"I just want to go out for a bit, is that alright?"

"I'm afraid it's better if you rest for tonight, Hannah-sama," the other replied, blocking the door so she wouldn't be able to p*** through. "We are here to make sure that you safely arrive to the King, and we will not do anything to jeopardize your safety, so please return to your room."

The way the warrior responded left no room for argument.

"I'm sorry to have bothered you," she bowed, apologetic for being selfish, and proceeded to close the door, locking it once more.

Tiamat sighed, "Aww, they aren't letting me get out of here."

"Shall I kill them?"

"_No!_" she reprimanded, "Killing isn't always the answer, you know."

"Then what shall we do My Lady?"

Tiamat looked around the room, and saw the window. Her room was located on the second floor, with light from the oil lamps of the inn streaming through the inside.

'_I could just yeet myself out of here…'_

She lifted the lever to the window and pushed it outwards; the cold night wind caressing her skin as a sudden influx of air entered the room.

She looked down from the opening, and was greeted with the sight of rocky pavement just a few meters below her..

'_Huh, I could probably make that jump.'_

Steeling her resolve, she took a few steps back from the window and ran full speed towards it before jumping out and roughly landing on the pavement with the spider following behind her much more gracefully.

Seeing that she had successfully escaped from the room, she did a victory fist pump.

"What are you doing, Hannah-sama?"

'_Ah...busted.'_

Behind her was Gazef Stronoff, standing watch outside her window sill.

v(≧∇≦v)三(v≧∇≦)v

As soon as Gazef Stronoff, guided her into the building, there were a few things he noticed.

The dubious nature of the inn and the jaded, wary eyes around him had instantly put him on edge.

The fact that more than a few lustful eyes were eyeing his charge didn't do much to help his mood either.

The two warriors he had ***igned to her were already guarding the entrance to her door, and so the only place left for him to guard was either the front door of the inn, or the window where someone could easily sneak in.

After he had entrusted her to his most trusted troops, he scouted the surrounding area.

They were supposed to go to the next village, but the Priestess had asked him to stop so that she could do her..._business_. In retrospect, he should've asked her to prepare for the trip instead of just forcing her onto a journey without telling her beforehand.

Gazef sighed, that was a mistake on his part. He should have been more understanding, afterall, women had needs that men wouldn't understand.

Because of this simple delay, he decided to stop at the village before the night got too dark.

Truly, he wished from the depths of his heart that they could have stopped at the next village.

Indeed, the place where they were now at did not take kindly to adventurers, especially those hailed as the "Heroes of Humanity."

The things about heroes was that the brighter they shone, the longer their shadows grew. Shadows so prominent yet so hidden that they wouldn't be able to notice until it was too late.

Heroes were the rare beings who were able to surp*** the limits of ordinary people through hard work or lucky enough to be blessed with imaginable powers. Even though people knew they were fortunate that heroes were born and created to protect them; at the same time, they knew that many heroes had also lost their way.

Afterall, one of the few adamantite adventurers had hailed from this village, but when the villagers asked him for help, he declined.

'_There's no merit in helping someone like you.'_

They could still remember the words he had uttered. How dare he? For him to abandon the place where he was born and to forget the kindness that his neighbors had shown him, the villagers could see him as no more than pond scum.

It was no wonder that these people had come to hate heroes so.

Truth to be told, he should've brought the rest of his Warrior-Band, but he had no idea that they would've been forced to stop at a clearly hostile village.

'_All because of a restroom break…'_

Making the best with what he had, he ***igned two warriors to her door and another two to rotate with them.

The rest of his Band slept in the small clearing not far from the village.

As the rest of his men prepared to rest, Gazef decided to guard the blindspots, the spots that were the most dangerous.

It wasn't that he didn't trust the Priestess's ability to defend herself, afterall, she had single handedly defeated the Sunlight Scripture, the elite mages of the Theocracy. Even so, he had to admit that perhaps the gossip flying around may have held a grain of truth.

There was no smoke if there was no fire.

He didn't see the Priestess fight the Sunlight Scripture. For all he knew, she could've ordered her dragons to eat them.

That was why he didn't want to take any chances.

The moon was high up in the sky, dawn still far away.

Some people had approached the window where she was staying, but as soon as they saw Gazef standing hidden by the shadows of the allies, they fled away.

Gazef scoffed as another scrawny pervert ran away from him.

All of the sudden, the window opened, and from the shadows he could see the Priestess's silhouette basking in the silver light of the moon.

And then she jumped.

She fucking jumped.

He saw her give a fist pump after clumsily landing on the ground before she started to walk away from the inn.

"What are you doing, Hannah-sama?"

Her entire body froze, as if she didn't expect him to be there, and she stiffly turned around with a sheepish smile.

"G-Gazef-san, good evening," she said with forced cheerfulness, her amethyst eyes trailing away from his sharp gaze.

"You are supposed to be sleeping."

"Erhm, yes, you see," she scrambled to find the right answer. It was clear to Gazef that she was caught completely off-guard.

Tiamat's face burned furiously as she looked down at her feet. She knew the reasoning behind her little escapade was silly, and that it was very likely that Gazef would think that she was running away.

A shiver went down her back as she tried to make herself smaller by wrapping her arms around her body, guarding against the cold night and Gazef's stare.

Tiamat decided that she had to tell him the truth. After all, he had told her that he would escort her safely to the Kingdom, and she had no reason to distrust him.

"I just want to play with Taki for a bit…" she whispered, embarr***ed.

Gazef just closed his eyes and sighed.

'_Why does a grown woman look like a child caught stealing candy?'_

Tiamat couldn't help but clutch her wrist with her hand, looking down at the ground. She felt like she was being scolded.

A wave of memories washed over her as she recalled her childhood, She remembered how the Matron would beat her whenever she did something wrong. Even now, she shivered as she thought of the Matron's anger, and she hunched down even more as she sensed Gazef's disapproving stare..

It was as if she was being berated for disobeying the Matron's orders. The surroundings around her changed, grey walls replacing a vivid forest, the stench of old paint and furniture overpowering the clean air of nature, her cheeks stinging with the phantom pain of being slapped.

Shame warred with panic as she fought to open her eyes. In her eyes, the Matron was walking forward to beat her. Gazef took a step towards her and as he raised his hand, she flinched.

She waited for the burning pain to blossom across her cheeks, but nothing came.

When she slowly opened her eyes, she could make out his confused expression as he watched her struggle. She took a step back to create a little bit of distance between them.

Gazef sighed for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, "I understand. Then, I shall escort you to meet your dragon. Afterall, it's dangerous to go alone at this hour."

"Really?!" she looked at him wide eyed, surprised that he didn't throw her back into her room.

"It's fine, afterall, I didn't give you any time to prepare. It's my fault," he bowed.

Tiamat's breath hitched, "No Gazef-san, I'm really sorry! It's not your fault at all, I'll just take ten minutes and then I'll go back to my room. I promise I won't bother you much, I'm sorry!" she deeply bowed.

"That's alright, Hannah-sama. Shall we go?" he said, choosing to push back the confusion he felt at her bizarre behavior. Tiamat nodded, leading the way with Gazef at her back, and the spider at his.

She peeked at Gazef from the corner of her eyes, as well as the spider that was behind him, already bringing up the blade to end the Warrior-Captain's life.

She couldn't help but to wildly gesture for the spider to stop.

"What is it, Hannah-sama?" Gazef looked behind him to see nothing, tightening his grip on the sword sheathed at his hips.

"N-Nothing!" Tiamat turned back towards the front, whistling as she guided them to where Pentakrisis was waiting.

Once they finally arrived in the clearing, they were greeted with the sight of a titanic silver dragon huddled up with its tail wrapped around it, seemingly waiting for someone in the dark, empty clearing.

Tiamat threw herself at him.

"Taki!"

As soon as the dragon heard her, he immediately raised his head, and pounced in glee towards her, causing small tremors to run along the ground. Even Gazef Stronoff, the Strongest Man in the Kingdom, couldn't help but to open his mouth in awe.

Using his snout, Pentakrisis lifted her up from the ground as she gave him a big hug.

"I missed you so _much_," she kissed his snout over and over again, as loud rumblings of happiness came from the dragon's maw.

The Dragon put her down and rolled over onto his back, allowing her access to his stomach as she continued to rub his smooth scales.

But the most surprising thing was that he had brought the baby dragons with him.

'_Is mooma here?'_ asked one of them who was playing around at the other side of the clearing and had observed their older brother's weird behaviour.

However, even before Tiamat could answer that question, one of them caught her scent and gasped.

'_It's mooma!'_ they screamed out through the mental link, and wagged their tails as they flew towards her.

'_Mooma, I found you!'_

As usual, they slammed their entire body into her, almost crushing her in the process.

"Yes, yes, I'm here," she laughed at their antics as they rubbed their heads on her body. "I missed you too…"

'_Come to think of it, I've never named them either…'_

'_Mooma, what's wrong?'_ one of the dragonlings asked, curious as to what she was pondering about.

Tiamat proceeded to hug all the baby dragons in her arms.

'_I need to give all of you names. Sorry about forgetting…'_

'_Name? What's a name mooma?' _one of them put his head on her lap.

'_A name is something that someone calls you. It is something that you will own for the rest of your lives, something that only belongs to you,' _Tiamat nuzzled the dragonling as she conversed with them, her eyes trailing away as she thought of their names.

Powerful names that meant something: unforgettable and meaningful.

"Alright, I've come up with some names!" she declared, startling the dragonlings with the sudden increase in volume.

'_You scared me mooma!' _one of them accused as it began hopping up and down in her lap.

"From now you'll be known as _Red_," Tiamat pointed at the one that was hopping on her.

"And you," she pointed at the one butting her stomach, "You'll be called _Chili_."

"And you," she picked up the one licking her face, "You wubby dubby wittle baby. Your name will be _Pepper_."

Once she had named all of her children, their eyes met, and they could see her tender eyes gazing at them. Almost immediately, they began screeching in joy, jumping and flying around the clearing gleefully.

"Do you like it?"

When they finished celebrating, they nuzzled into her body as a way of thanks, growling softly at her for giving them something that truly belonged to them.

Even Pentakrisis puffed his breath as a way of congratulating them.

Gazef, who had been standing a few meters away from the Priestess to give her some privacy, couldn't help but to walk closer so that he could see the majestic beings in the moonlit field.

He had undeniably seen these dragonlings before.

"Are these the dragons from that day?" Gazef asked, feeling a little awkward at breaking what was obviously an intimate moment.

As he made his presence known, the baby dragons hissed at him, angry that a stranger was disturbing their time with their mooma. Even Pentakrisis growled at the unwelcome man in front of him, curling his tail around Tiamat and the babies.

"Hey now, it's alright. This one's a friend," Tiamat tried to explain; even if it didn't stop them from being wary of Gazef, at least their hostility was repressed for a little bit.

"They've grown bigger," he remarked.

He remembered the last time he saw her dragons; they were still small, still a bit shorter than her, but now he could see that the baby dragons were growing. Their bodies loomed over hers and the scales protruding from them were far more dangerous and threatening.

It was amazing how she could easily take the blunt force of their hard scales and weight slamming into her.

"Is that so? I feel like they're still small compared to Taki…" she replied.

The aforementioned dragon scoffed, lifting his head up as if to say, _of course_.

Even though Gazef was standing quite a distance away, she could feel his unsettling gaze on her back.

"Gazef-san, wanna try petting them?" she asked, trying to break the tension. Perhaps giving him a distraction would steer his gaze away from her.

It didn't occur to her that Gazef was wondering about how someone so small could be so strong; sadly, he was completely unaware that his gaze had been piercing her, making her uncomfortable.

"There is no need, Hannah-sama. As you said, you have ten minutes."

Tiamat nodded and decided to give her dragons her undivided attention.

"Now children, shall we play for a bit?" she asked them.

'_Playplayplay!' _the dragonlings screamed out excitedly as they flew up into the air, their jaws filling up with brilliant flames.

"Do you want to join us, Gazef-san?" she asked.

Gazef sat on the gr***y plains, as he laid his sword down to his right, "No, it's alright Hannah-sama."

"Okay, shall we play by ourselves?"

The baby dragons nodded enthusiastically, flying away high into the skies until they couldn't be seen. But what was weird to Gazef was that the Priestess suddenly broke out into a run.

He sat there in confusion before his instincts suddenly began screaming at him to move. Gazef Stronoff immediately rolled behind a tree as night turned into dawn, dragonflame dying the entire clearing a radiant orange and red.

The shockwave shook the entire area, and if Gazef had not hid behind the trees, he would've been blown away.

"What the hell?!" he shouted to himself, his ears still ringing from the impact.

"『Fire Bolt』!" the Priestess's voice rang out as a bolt of fire emerged from flames and hit a dragonling straight in the chest. The dragonling, stunned from the impact, dropped like a rock to the ground.

Seeing this, the two dragonlings still in the air slowly descended before suddenly vanishing in a burst of speed, strafing the still burning clearing in a stream of purple flames.

Gazef couldn't do anything but stare helplessly as the once gr***y plain was burned into oblivion.

'_The villagers must be worried…' _he absentmindedly thought as the Priestess and her Dragons cheerfully exchanged volleys of hellfire.

'_To think that people this much stronger than me exist,' _Gazef Stronoff tiredly smiled, as the Priestess panickedly tried to put out the fire on her dress.

"Watch out for the clothing Chili!" the Priestess tried to scold the dragonling as it burped a cloud of fire into her face.

Gazef couldn't help but chuckle.

'_I wonder how the world would be like if more people were as laid-back as this.'_

"Hannah-sama, two more minutes!"

The Priestess sloppily saluted him before reaching out her arms and catching the two dragonlings as they tried to strafe the clearing again.

"Chili, Pepper," she bent down and picked up Red who was waking up from his stupor, "Red, I have to go for now. You kids be good now and listen to big sister Aura, 'kay?"

'_No, play more mooma!' _the dragonlings protested as they began to butt their heads against her again.

"Mommy has to do something important right now. But I'll be back soon to play with you all again," she gave them one last hug before nudging them towards Taki.

Pentakrisis gently gathered the struggling dragonlings in his grip, looking at the Priestess as if telling her to be careful, before flying away into the night sky.

The Priestess watched, waving goodbye as they disappeared into the distance.

"You really do love them a lot," Gazef mentioned out of the blue, coming out from behind the scorched tree.

"Yes, but honestly, I really don't deserve them, they are such good dragons," she shrugged with a bitter smile, "Shall we return to the inn, Gazef-san?"

Gazef nodded and led the way out of the clearing back to the inn. The way back was quiet, the stars and moon guiding each and every step they took.

Yet none of that light shone any clarity on the questions she had for the man in front of her.

Why did the King invite her? Why her? Why was it so important to have her there at the Capital?

But most importantly, had Gazef told the King her secret?

Tiamat looked at his back warily.

"I'm sorry I told you that you couldn't bring your dragon," Gazef suddenly spoke out.

She tilted her head in confusion. Why? Was he apologizing for knowing her secret?

Gazef continued, "I saw how close you are with them. To be honest, I've never thought of being friendly with… non-humans. All my years of living, I've been taught to protect humanity, but I would have never thought to protect humanity in a way such as yours."

"I see…" Tiamat scrunched her brows together in bewilderment.

"But you must know that this is for your own good. The nobles at the court would tear you to pieces if you bought something as eye-catching as a dragon," Gazef nodded his head to acknowledge her gratitude as he continued to explain.

"Why would they do that?"

"Because you, Hannah-sama, because you are the first person ever to have tamed not one, but _four _dragons. Four beings of insurmountable might that even I can not hope to defeat," Gazef laughed bitterly.

"So there hasn't been a dragon tamer in the past?" Tiamat asked curiously.

Gazef nodded, "You and the Dark Hero Momon are the only ones to have forced powerful beings to your will."

Gazef glanced back at her from the corner of his eyes and saw that her inquisitive eyes revealed that she was digesting everything he had said.

Nothing he had said was a lie. He knew just how corrupt the nobles were, and he feared that such a gentle soul would invariably be decimated by the greed of those fools.

As much as he wanted to see her again, he had never expected the King to _personally_ ask him to escort her to the Capital. Although he still owed her his life, there was no way that he could have refused the King's order as one of his loyal subjects. At the same time, he feared that the Priestess's spirit might not be strong enough.

Afterall, to be able to converse with nobles was something that one was born with. No commoner could possibly keep up with the intrigues of the court, and the nobles would undoubtedly look down on said commoner.

Gazef's stress continued to mount as the inn came into sight. He absolutely had to get these thoughts across to the Priestess before they arrived at the Capital.

"You must understand Hannah-sama, everything I do is for your own protection," Gazef turned and looked at her, standing before the door of the inn.

"Why...why are you telling me this?"

Gazef turned to look at her, "You saved me, and therefore I must return the favor," he paused for a while, letting his intention sink in before he continued, "I'm sure when the King invited you to the palace, the nobles have plotted things behind His Majesty's back to keep you there. No doubt so that they could exploit you."

"How do you know that, Gazef-san?"

"I've been working as the King's personal guard for a while, and have seen the greed of these nobles. That is why, no matter what they ask you, please reject it, Hannah-sama."

He closed his eyes, thinking in his mind that she, with her kind and gentle nature, would readily agree to what he had suggested.

But when he opened his eyes, he was greeted with a confident smile.

"I appreciate that you're looking after me, Gazef-san, but I'm afraid that's not necessary."

"Hannah-sama, those nobles—"

"I am well aware of the nature of the nobles in the Kingdom," she cut him off, "I'm sorry for being blunt, but your protection is not needed."

Gazef was shocked by the fire gleaming in her eyes.

It was as if she was bold enough to turn the entire Kingdom against her and still have the confidence to come out on top.

An unwavering pillar in a storm of plots.

No matter how tough things may get, it looked as if she had total control over the situation.

"Is that all?" she asked kindly.

"Y-Yes."

"I see," the woman pushed the door of the inn open, allowing the light from the oil lamp to peek through the opened door, "If that's all, then I bid you goodnight Gazef-san. Sorry for being a bother, and thank you for escorting me to my dragons."

Before he could reply, she entered the inn, leaving him alone outside with no one in sight.

* * *

**Canon Omake: Explanation**

* * *

"What was that explosion last night, Stronoff-sama?!"

"Are we under attack? Is it monsters?"

"I saw flames coming from the forest!"

Gazef forced himself to not sigh as he was mobbed by a crowd of worried villagers.

If only he knew what the Priestess's definition of 'play' was. Now that he had to re***ure all of the villagers, they were definitely going to be late to the Capital.

"Do not worry, it was only a mere Salamander in the forest that I came upon while patrolling the perimeters. I have defeated it so please be at ease," Gazef came up with an excuse on the spot.

It would be bad if they knew it was the Priestess causing such a ruckus, especially with how hostile the village was towards Adamantites.

He had to break his code of honor and lie.

"A-As expected of our hero, Gazef Stronoff!" the villagers gazed at him in awe.

"Gazef-sama, please take this gift!" one woman lifted up a blanket she had knitted. Gazef graciously took the proffered present.

"Warrior-Captain-sama, how can we ever repay you?"

"Citizens," Gazef nobly declared, "There is no need for you to pay me back for doing my duty. All the payment that I desire is for you to live a good life"

"So humble! He's a real hero unlike all those fakers out there!" the crowd continued to praise him.

"In any case, I must return to the Capital. His Majesty had been expecting a guest." he maneuvered his way through the crowd, "Excuse me."

He did feel a bit guilty for using the Priestess to boost his reputation, however unintentional it was.

But better that the responsibility fall on him than someone else.

* * *

**Omake: Secretly a Genius?**

* * *

The dull thumping at the back of his head was starting to annoy him.

His head felt like it was about to split open as a headache began to form.

Ainz stared helplessly at the mountain of documents before him.

His office was filled with unfinished paperwork, the work he had been procrastinating on for weeks on end, and as he stared with jaws agape, Albedo walked back and forth, stacking the pile of documents higher and higher.

It was to the extent that he could not even see his own table.

He sighed. Might as well get all of this done and over with.

Nazarick had been vastly improving in every definition of the word: the work hours, the income flowing in, as well as the stocks of materials that kept on coming in to Nazarick.

He even kept his and Tiamat's adventuring money circulating throughout all the floors of Nazarick by allowing its denizens to exchange money for curios from the outside world, such as toys and artifacts that didn't exist in YGGDRASIL. All the other services and food in Nazarick was provided for free for all its denizens.

Ainz couldn't bring himself to charge his children money for the services in their own home.

That was why he had so many documents.

"Ainz, I need your approval on this document ASAP. The bar needs to increase the stock of alcohol," Tiamat hollered.

"Ainz-sama, please check the monthly expenditures for this month," Albedo added, much to his dismay.

Ainz sighed, "What about the rise of the food expenses outside of Nazarick? Aren't the farmers at Carne Village are asking for a price increase?"

"That part was handled by Lady Tiamat, Ainz-sama."

Ainz looked up from his paperwork, "Can she handle that much responsibility?"

"Oi, don't talk as if I'm not here."

"So far, Lady Tiamat has made no mistakes, Ainz-sama."

"As I said, don't talk like I'm not here…"

Ainz just look at Albedo, completely disregarding the Dragoness, "Umu, understood."

"Ainz..."

"What about the profits gained from the Ninth Floor? Also, with regards to lowering the cost of food materials, how does it go?" Ainz asked the Succubus.

Tiamat slammed her hand on Ainz's table, causing some of the documents to fall off from the table and flutter onto the floor, "Listen to me."

Ainz finally looked up to see the Dragoness looming in front of his table.

Tiamat set aside one pile of documents on his table, "These are all the documents detailing the expenditures of Nazarick's residents. They seem to be growing more open to purchasing items from the outside world after our initial shopping excursion, so that plan of ours is working."

She took another stack of paper, "These forms are from the shops on the Ninth Floor requesting for the price of the materials from Carne Village to be lowered. Personally, I think you can reject this. I've checked the costs of the raw materials, and they're very reasonable. I agree with the proposal of increasing the costs a little bit, after all, maintaining a good relationship with the producers is very important."

Ainz opened his mouth, but she was far from finished, "There's also a proposal from the kitchen to start producing birthday cakes for birthday events to generate more profit. Of course, these cakes will be free to anyone in Nazarick, but I've been considering selling them to the outside world. However, there's a problem with the quality and prices of products required for sweets because they are waaaaay more expensive compared to basic meats and vegetables."

Ainz just stared at her with burning red eyes.

"What?" she asked.

"You are managing more than what you've been given."

"Well, I'm here to help you, so isn't it obvious that I'm going to put more care in it?"

"Ainz-sama, Lady Tiamat," Albedo called out, "We also need to discuss the increasing price of outside trinkets throughout Nazarick. Although it's small at the moment, this issue will likely become an issue in the future."

Tiamat went back to her table and found a particular document as she quickly flipped through the entire report.

"Wow, this really is small. The value of money is decreasing, but the price of goods are growing," Tiamat smiled at Albedo, "It's fine, Albedo."

"Wait, how is that fine?" Ainz interjected.

"Well, what used to be purchasable with one coin now needs to be bought with two, which is obviously inflation. Furthermore, because there's a demand, the prices will increase. However, the increase in prices also indicates that the denizens of Nazarick are now becoming more well-off since they could afford to purchase more items from the outside," Tiamat simply explained.

"Someone also suggested increasing the bank's interest rates," Albedo followed up, "Perhaps we can decrease the money circulated within Nazarick and therefore increase the value of money to its original amount."

"Good suggestion, but we don't have to do that right now. If we change the interest rates, commodity prices will change again. Right now our first priority is allowing everyone in Nazarick to use their money, allowing the more materials from outside to flow into our economy."

"Understood, My Lady."

"Hold on one moment," Ainz raised his hand. "Bank are something that we recently established right? Why is Tiamat in charge of this?"

"Oh my, Ainz-sama, did you not know?" Albedo looked at Ainz who was sitting in his chair with a confused glint in his eyes. "The person who came up with the idea of a banking system in Nazarick is Lady Tiamat."

"You were the one who submitted that proposal?!" Ainz asked, his tone raised in disbelief.

He remembered the first time the proposal had landed on his table, Albedo had marked that document as something of the highest priority, so he decided to read it before he started working.

The proposal was intricate, explaining the reasoning why Nazarick needed a bank, and how it would profit Nazarick in the long run without wasting any of YGGDRASIL's coins, and by the time he was finished, he couldn't help but to agree with it.

If his children were able to store their money in one place, it would be a lot easier for him and Tia to distribute their income since they wouldn't have to do it on an individual by individual basis. Instead they could just delegate that job to the bank. Furthermore, it also meant that they could easily retrieve funds in the case of an emergency.

"Yes," she replied nonchalantly.

"How…"

"Isn't that obvious? From the library of course."

Ainz's jaw dropped open.

To him, he found economics to be exceptionally difficult even at the introductory level. But as the leader of Nazarick, he had taken it upon himself to at least understand a little of the topic.

It was easy to say that economics was not something that someone could fully understand without experiencing it for themselves and applying book theory to real life.

This was because in the real world, models often did not fit with the models provided in books. In addition, it was easy to get lost in the flood of economic buzzwords.

But Tia said she simply read the book, implemented it in Nazarick, and even to the extent that she created a proposal that was far higher in quality and presentation than any he could remember seeing back on Earth.

"You...are you secretly a genius?" he muttered, but her keen sense of hearing had captured what he said.

"If I can do it, you can too, right?" she curiously asked. "I don't think it's that hard. Plus, you're definitely smarter than me in this area."

Ainz could only lower his head in shame.

The thing that had changed the most for both of them, aside from their physical appearances, was how their brain perceived things.

For Ainz, he could easily memorize everything in a single glance. His undead mind never forgot anything, even more so for experiences that encapsulated his emotions.

And for Tiamat, her brain's computational abilities had increased by leaps and bounds, making difficult concepts seem as easy as one plus one.

Even so, that was no excuse to fall behind in acquiring more knowledge. He was the guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown after all.

Ainz focused on the paperwork again and resolved to visit the Library more often.

He had a lot of catching up to do.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you UndeadLord22 and Razel Treasure for naming the baby dragons! The Omake is a little sneak peek at how Nazarick had grown, and how the Supreme Beings have affected its growth. Next chapter would be the meeting with the King! Super Excited~**

**Hackslashbash: The playing with the dragonlings part was based off of the 'play' scene from Kobayashi's Maid Dragon. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**elmeted **T**yrant **T**rounces **P**easant **S**od (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**evious **i**nventor **s**parks **c**reation **o**n**r**ejected **d**evices** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	25. CHAPTER 25: Guardians of Nazarick

**A/N: Thank you Razel-Treasure, Bill L, Sync24, and Rhavis for beta-ing the chapter!**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal**

**Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth**

**Chapter VII - White Knight**

The tale of the slain Dragon was spread far and wide all across the mortal realms and everyone rejoiced for the undefeated monster was no more.

All but one.

The White Knight that the Dragon battled with in the hunt.

Even though he was the strongest amongst mortals, his allegiance did not lie solely with them, and so he found it incredibly unfair for the Dragon.

"How shameful," he said to the humans, "For you to celebrate as if you won a war, when you just defeated a weak dragon."

How cruel were the hearts of Man.

No one, even him, he acknowledged, would be able to survive that kind of ambush. Their attack was designed to tire out the opponent by swarming it in large numbers.

That was why he went on a personal quest.

He learned that the Dragon was still alive, even if her physical form had been destroyed.

Bearing to force the full might of his body and experience, he travelled all across the Nine Realms, searching for the pieces of her soul that had been scattered.

Small golden orbs of light, slightly flickering like an ember in a fireplace, hidden throughout the countless secret dens of the World Tree.

It was like searching for a needle in an ocean of sand.

After many years, he finally achieved the impossible.

He had scoured the frozen tundras of Niflheim, climbed down the caves to Muspelheim, contested with the arrogant giants of Jotunheim, and ultimately managed to find all the pieces of her soul.

However, the Dragon no longer had a physical body of her own.

And so, there was only one person available for him to consult. An old friend.

The Overlord of Death himself.

* * *

**Chapter 25: Guardian of Nazarick**

* * *

Since the dawn of time, monsters had always been hunting humans. With their skills and thirst for blood, the weak humans had always been the victim: food that was readily available for the monsters to feast on.

Not elves, not demi-humans, not lizard-men, but humans.

That is why they needed warriors, saviors and heroes who could rid them of these monsters.

It was said that a long time ago, one man had accidentally killed a beast on his own, gaining skills that only species other than humans could achieve.

The very first _human_ swordsman.

He taught his skills to several disciples, and to suit each person's skills and capabilities, he had changed the skills in accordance to the person he taught, creating derivatives of his skills which brought out the latent talent of countless others.

Before long, the humans could finally carve out a small corner of the world for themselves.

However, not everyone had access to these talents, causing the gifted ones to create a group of people who would eradicate monsters for a price.

They were called _Workers_.

At first, the payment for eradicating monsters was low, but when the Workers realized that there were stronger monsters out there, they knew that their job was much more dangerous than they first believed. Their fear grew even further as they realized that their numbers were slowly diminishing over time.

When the Workers raised their prices because of these unknown factors, the people had agreed. After all, providing their services in exchange for money was profitable to both parties involved.

With more money in their coffers, it would be easier for the Workers to improve their gear. More money meant better armor and better weapons to protect their patrons.

In a few decades, the Workers had made a name for themselves. Hailed by the people as their protectors, their saviors, their _heroes_.

However, they grew arrogant, corrupt, and cruel. They began requesting more money than the people could ever afford and eventually, only high-paying clients such as nobles could afford their services.

The nobles would stay at their home, safe and protected, while the small people would be easily killed at a moment's notice.

The 'Heroes' had abandoned their own kind.

Unable to close their eyes at this unfair treatment, a group of Workers decided to create a structured system where there would be no more corruption, no more unfair treatment, and most importantly, so that the people would once again be safe and protected.

They call themselves Adventurers. Establishing the Adventurers' Guild for Workers to join in as long as they abide by the rules of the guild.

The Guild created a safe environment for the Adventurers to work in by reviewing the client's request before sending people of suitable strength to solve it. As a result, casualties decreased and the number of Adventurers increased.

As Adventurers grew in number, so did the people's trust in them. In each instance, they strove to ensure that each client was treated fairly and respectfully.

Soon enough, the number of Workers dwindled as many of them decided to become Adventurers instead.

However, there remained a number of Workers who stuck to their roots, and as a result, ended up competing with Adventurers for jobs.

The Workers called the Adventurers, _Guildies_. Glorified Errand Boys who only took orders from their so-called Guild Master, taking safe quests without risking their lives.

Adventurers called their counterpart _Goldhounds_, for they only worked if there was gold involved. Just like a dog with its tongue out, their disgusting saliva dirtied the ground in their wake, leaving their filthy trails for all to see.

The people had the Adventurers to protect them.

While the nobles had the Workers do their dirty work.

That was why most Workers and Adventurers didn't care about the rivalry, as long as both parties got the job done.

And that was the cold reality of it.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

**One week ago…**

She woke up surrounded in complete darkness.

The air felt different. She couldn't put her finger on it, but something in the atmosphere felt foul.

At that moment, it occurred to her that the smell of dirt she was so accustomed to was gone, and there were no sounds of people yelling on the street markets either.

Nothing but eerie silence.

She sat up from her prone position and looked around.

The girl suddenly realized that she was surrounded by three dark walls. The only source of light that had come to greet her was on the other wall that was similar to a prison cage.

She stared at the metal bars, shiny and strong.

However, it was the monster on the other side of the bars that caught her attention.

"My my, we have another one~?"

A flabby gray aberration with countless tentacles sprouting from its head filled her vision. It was wearing a bizarre outfit made of black leather that revealed far too much of its body.

As soon as her eyes fully grasped what she had seen, her body trembled as the wicked draft of the freezing room crawled up her skin.

The temperature had nothing to do with her trembling though.

She looked around the massive room she was in,

A peasant like her had never been in such a bizarre room. The lack of windows didn't allow it to tell her just how much time had passed, or even if it was night or day.

The sound of whimpers rose behind her and the woman whipped her head around.

She widened her eyes; she knew these people.

The florist's daughter.

The blacksmith's apprentice.

The son of the adventurer.

Even the beggar near the bakery.

People whom she often passed by, as she was too shy to greet them and looked at them properly.

Their bodies were littered with bruises, and their clothes were ripped beyond compare.

They were crammed so tight inside the small prison that they were constantly touching one another, each trying their best to forget the pain.

But as soon as these people had seen the monster in front of her, they had scrambled to the back wall of the prison, straying as far as they could from the monster in front of her.

"_Ara_, are you shy my dears? Didn't I show you enough love last time~?" the monster asked, caressing the metal bar with her weirdly pinkish nails.

She trembled in fear as the monster walked closer.

"Death Knight, take this one to my room."

The woman heard the heavy clanking of metal from around the corridor.

For some reason, the sound filled her with dread.

The sound grew closer and closer, until she finally saw it.

A giant knight outfitted in a set of armor completely covered in spikes. In place of a face was a malevolent skull with eyes gleaming in fury, No matter how she looked at it, that...that _thing _was no knight.

It was a Butcherer.

Suddenly she had heard the sound of hysterical crying and screaming sobs only interrupted by the person's need to draw breath. A primal sound that no one could ignore.

The sound had came from her.

She tried to stand up in an attempt to run away, grabbing onto the wall to support her body, only to fall down with a slump. The woman fell onto her bottom and tried to scoot to the back end of the room, grabbing onto her dress to calm her violently shaking hands.

But everything she did was useless.

"Oh my goodness dear. We really do have to hurry up, you know? There are still a lot more people who need to sing~" the monster opened the cage-like door to the room and advanced towards her.

The woman couldn't stop shaking.

"Don't be too scared now~! I usually prefer men, but I promise to _pleasure _you to the best of my abilities~"

"P-Please...please don't do this…"

"Nonsense! You trespassed onto the territory of the Supreme Beings, so the only fate waiting for you is a painful death~! Anyways," the monstrosity beckoned for the Butcherer behind her, "Death Knight, take her to the _room~_"

The armored corpse took a step towards her.

She scooted back an inch, her eyes red with tears and fear.

It grabbed her by the scruff of her clothes and lifted her up, taking her out of the room.

"N-NO! S-Someone! Help, PLEASE!" the woman futilely flailed in the Death Knight's iron grip.

She looked back at the people huddling at the back of the room, her eyes tearing up and her throat hoarse as she begged for help. The tears burst like water from a dam, spilling all over her face.

But eventually only a single lone tear traced down her cheek once they looked away.

Her eyes widened at the realization, and a small part of her died inside.

"W-Why…" she asked, still thrashing against the armored corpse's hold.

"WHYWHYWHYWHYWHY?! HELP ME!" she pleaded.

But none of them listened.

She opened her mouth, but not a single sound came out. Her entire body violently quivered as the rest of them pretended like they had seen nothing; they had lost all hope for salvation.

"Let's get going now dearie~" the tentacled horror sashayed off towards a room at the end of the corridor, the Death Knight following with the woman in its grip.

"Here we are~" the monster stopped before a door of cold iron and opened it.

The woman was greeted by the sight of countless bizarre instruments, causing fear to grow in her heart as a shiver ran down her spine.

"Oh~? You're interested in my instruments? Which one do you like? This one could cut off your skin so thinly, even thinner than your hair, but the pain is exquisite, especially if I cut off the same place over and over and over again. Perhaps this? This is one of my favorite tools; I can cleanly rip off your nails one by one. Or perhaps," the monster's face morphed into a grotesque grin, "You want my body to do it for you~?"

A sudden glint entered her eyes as she realized the purpose of the room.

"_Ara!_ It looks like now you know why you're here dearie~!" the monster cheerfully clapped its hands together. "I promise you I'll make you sing so much more beautifully than the previous ones. After all, your throat is the best instrument and your screams will be the finest music to my ears~"

"N-no, pl-please don't do this…"

"Close the doors," the gray horror looked at the Death Knight, "And go guard the prisoners."

The Death Knight obediently shut the door behind itself as it exited the room.

"Now, shall we get started~?"

The rest of the prisoners had flinched when they heard the screams of agony that filled the corridors of the Frozen Prison. Her scream layered on top of each other as they relived their own experiences.

A gruesome chorus of pain.

But to Neuronist, it was the most beautiful song she had ever heard.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

Ainz looked at the scroll with the inscribed spell that he had created.

He looked around him to behold the fruits of his labor. Although the Arena of the Sixth Floor seemed perfectly normal at first glance, he had imbued his surroundings with a number of enchantments that he himself had created.

Spells that _he _had made.

Only his emotional suppression kept him from breaking out into a large smile every few seconds. That, and his skeletal features.

The sheer number of applications this knowledge had was astounding to say the least. Just in one day at the arena, he had already fortified the place to slightly buff the defense, agility, and offensive prowess of allies within the area.

Best of all, the passive enchantments were permanent. There were very few spells in YGGDRASIL that were capable of enchanting an area for eternity.

And all it cost him was a little bit more mana and a few gems as regents.

He could create his own buffs, debuffs, attacks, defenses. Hell, he could even simulate spells from foreign branches of magic.

There were no job or racial limitations that could hold him back from what was essentially unlimited power.

A _Ding! _echoed in his skull.

He had never opened his status screen so quickly.

『STATUS:

Momonga, Guildmaster of Ainz Ooal Gown

Level: 101 (2560/999999)

HP: 60

MP: Exceeds Limits

PHY. ATK: 35

PHY. DEF: 70

Agility: 40

MAG. ATK: 90

MAG. DEF: 95

Resistance: 95

Special : 100

Total: 685+

You have acquired the『Spellcrafter』class.

Congratulations, you have acquired three new skills!

『Mind's Well』

_Allows access to l̸͎̊͛̎̽̆į̸̞̲̭͖͔̲̳̘͂b̴̘̜̯̝̘͎͆̏̿͂̓̄̌̏͝ŗ̶̧̩̮̭̼̲͂̆̈́͝a̴̡͇̗̙͊̔r̴̦̟̘̺̾̿̿̈́͝ͅi̶̭͎̦͈̰͈͌̿͗̚͠e̷̯̩̭̺̩̫̼͍͚͚͂̒̏̍͛͗̽̔̔́̚s̶̙̺̅͘ that the crafter has met the requisites for._

『Inscription Proficiency』

_Increase in success rate when performing an inscription-based activity. Bonus increase when inscribing a spell onto a scroll or another magical focus._

『Quick-Cast』

_When casting a spell that the crafter themselves has created, they may ignore any start-up time for casting. This skill can be used twice an hour._

_Cannot be applied to ritual based spells and Super-Tier Spells™. _』

Ainz stood stock-still in dumb excitement.

All of a sudden, he began whooping out loud.

One of Tia's baby dragons sleepily opened its eyes to the sight of a dancing skeleton in the middle of the arena.

"_Rawr?_" it flew over to his Mooma's friend, curious as to why he was dancing.

"Oh, umu, ahem," Ainz quickly stopped his private celebration and cleared his throat in an attempt to cover up his previous cheer; all while his suppression worked to push down his embarrassment and lingering happiness.

If the dragonling told Tia what it saw, she would never let Ainz live it down.

Thankfully, the twins were not there to witness his undignified behavior, as they had gone outside to do their assigned jobs.

"_Raawwwr?_" the dragonling started flying around his head, still intrigued by his previous behavior.

"A-Anyways, I will now head back to my office," Ainz straightened his back, taking on the persona of the almighty guildmaster once again as he prepared to teleport back to his work, "By the way," he looked up at the dragonling.

"I would greatly appreciate it if you did not tell your mother about this."

"_Rawr_."

With a quiet sigh, Ainz activated his ring and the surroundings warped from the Colosseum to the purple office he was so familiar with.

"Welcome back, Ainz-sama," Albedo bowed as soon as she felt his presence.

"Albedo," he greeted, making his way to his chair before taking a look at the paperwork for the day.

It was great that the stacks of paper on his table had been slowly receding after a few days of working from sunrise to sunrise. But somehow new paperwork kept on making its way to his table while Tiamat's table was clean and empty.

Speaking about that Dumb Dragon, he had ordered one of the Eight Edged Assassins to stay with her at all times, but he had also ordered a dozen more to stand in reserve just in case something happened.

Even still, he didn't feel completely comfortable with Tia going into unknown territory.

"Ainz-sama," Albedo began, pulling him out of his thoughts, "Here is the paperwork for today. The most urgent pieces are the reports from Neuronist Painkill regarding the intruders at the second base Cocytus and Aura had built."

"Tell me about the intruders," Ainz requested of the Guardian Overseer. He found it easier to listen to the reports from Albedo than reading a dry ten pages.

"As per your order, we have set a teleportation trap at the door so people who enter the base will be teleported to Neuronist's dungeon. In just five days, there have been a total of twenty-four people who had infiltrated the building."

"That's a lot. Who are they?" Ainz's voice grew heavy.

"After Neuronist had interrogated all of them, she had found that all of them were just civilians who were under a second-tier『Charm』. However, the intruders don't know who or why they were being sent there."

"That's problematic," Ainz commented.

It seemed that the perpetrators knew what they were doing. They were sending scouts to look at the place, but instead of sending their soldiers or hiring some adventurers, they chose to charm some innocent civilians instead?

After a few moments of pondering, a bolt of realization struck Ainz.

The people in the dungeon were _bait_.

And they were being dangled in front of him to see whether or not he would bite it.

"What is the state of the intruders?" Ainz hastily asked.

"For now, they are still suffering from Neuronist's usual procedure for intruders since we haven't sent Pestonya to heal them, but they are alive and imprisoned in the Frozen Prison, Ainz-sama."

Ainz would have seethed in rage if he didn't have his emotional suppressor.

His opponents were not only distasteful, they were cowards of the highest degree.

Instead of just confronting him straight on, they sat in the background and forced innocents to do their dirty work.

Ainz was reminded of his boss who forced his workers to take on his responsibilities while he reaped all the benefits.

_Despicable_.

"If Neuronist finds out who is behind this, mark them as the highest level of threat against Nazarick."

Albedo widened her eyes.

To be evaluated as the greatest of dangers against Nazarick was almost unheard of.

The last time in living memory she could recall such a crisis being declared was when the Grand Alliance was at their doorsteps. If Ainz-sama was treating this new enemy as a disaster of the same caliber…

Then she pitied the poor fools who thought they could stand against Ainz Ooal Gown without paying the ultimate price.

"It will be as you will," she swiftly replied.

"Moreover, Albedo," Ainz picked up the next report on the stack, "About this report—"

The familiar _beep_ of 『Message』interrupted him.

Ainz sighed; no wonder he never finished his paperwork.

[Ainz-sama,]

[What is it, Narberal?]

[The insects at the Adventurer's Guild want to see you, Ainz-sama] Naberal reported.

[I see. I'll be at the hotel room soon.]

[Understood.]

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

He swung his sword in a wide horizontal arc, the bodies of the intruders parting like butter around a hot knife. Even as his enemies sunk to the grassy floor of the forest and choked on their blood, none of them had dirtied his midnight-dark armor.

Ainz casually dodged a punch from behind. He quickly spun around and with a speed that his enemies couldn't comprehend; he slammed his two greatswords into both of his assailants simultaneously.

Stars burned in their vision as they were thrown far across the clearing. One of them tried to stand up and delivered a sloppy kick towards the Dark Warrior's female companion.

She easily stepped back and evaded the kick before dashing towards him then slammed her palm on his chest and a fierce bolt of electricity burned through his entire body, causing him to lose his vision and slump down on the ground.

Another man who had been hiding in one of the shrubs threw his body weight at the female mage, startling her before she quickly recovered and brought her knee cap to his nose.

Ainz heard the blunt crack and ran towards Narberal to help. Blood was leaking from the man's nostrils as his nose was twisted unnaturally to the right. Somehow, the man managed to stand back up in an unsteady fighting position.

He pulled his fist back again and threw another punch, but before it could touch Narberal, Ainz blocked it with his sword and ploughed through his stomach.

For the man, the hit was equivalent to a full speed carriage rushing into him head on. His guts turned into liquid and his blood vessels burst. Before long, he had fallen on the ground, his chest that had gently rising and sinking with each shallow breath before it stopped forever.

"Momon-sa—n," Narberal stuttered— Ainz's request slightly slipping from her memory— as she looked at one of the groups who managed to use the others as a distraction to sneak past the duo and into their decoy Nazarick base.

As Narberal was about to run to catch them, Ainz blocked her way with his hand, slightly shaking his head as he let them run inside the building.

"Leave them be," he said to Narberal, and she complied.

There was no escape once the intruders had entered the building. A teleportation trap that Ainz himself had crafted during his time earlier in the Arena was installed just past the door. The trap would differentiate between allies and enemies, forcibly transporting the latter to Neuronist's dungeon.

Despite the efficiency of the trap he himself had designed, Ainz let out a heavy sigh.

'_It's been weeks now…'_ he huffed his breath, half-pretending that the people were tiring him so they would come at him. _'And these people are still coming in.'_

A week ago he had received an Adamantite quest from the guild regarding the sudden disappearance of people in E-Rantel.

At first they were going to give the quest to Hannah Annafelowz, the Silver Priestess; however, she was such a highly requested adventurer that the guild reasoned that she might not have enough time for such a quest, especially when a noble had just come in to request that she personally purify one of his mines.

Because of the urgency of the quest, they were left with no choice but to give it to Dark Warrior Momon instead.

There were a total of twenty-four people who had disappeared.

The number of people who had disappeared and the number of intruders who had recently entered Nazarick's second base matched, and Ainz knew this was no coincidence.

Promising that he wouldn't return to E-Rantel until all the missing people were found, he left the city, posting Narberal at the hotel with the order to keep her ears open just in case there was more information that she could gather.

Once he had returned to Nazarick, he wasted no time and immediately teleported himself to the Fifth Floor where all the intruders were being kept.

The sight was something he would never forget.

All of the intruders had their hands and legs bound by large padlocks. Every single one of the twenty-four were slumped down on the floor of the prison, liveless and utterly defeated.

Their eyes held not the light of someone who lived; even though they were open, they had looked lifeless, _dead_.

Neuronist's torture had broken them, completely and utterly.

Well, that was to be expected, considering just how harsh _he _had configured Neuronist's character.

He immediately took an entire day to personally remove their memories with『Control Amnesia』, keeping Pestonya on call to supply him with mana and heal the intruders' injuries.

Ainz had taken special care to edit out all thoughts of their torture. Despite his Undead nature severely repressing his already dulled empathy, something in their gazes reminded him far too much of how Tia, no, _Hannah, _looked during some of the bakery meetups when she thought no one was watching.

And so he expunged all recollections of their time in the dungeon.

After he had done that and took a few hours to very carefully plan his next moves, he had decided that his plan was perfect enough so that no one would question how he found them all, and Momon's name would be hailed once again for making the impossible, possible.

But that was a week ago.

Apparently, after that Adamantite quest, people were now aware of the existence of Nazarick's second base in the forest. As a result, workers had been coming in from all around the place, causing an increase in prisoners in Nazarick and more problems for him to handle.

He had no choice but to eradicate them all using his Adventurer persona, especially when another Adamantite quest had landed on him to investigate the place while Tiamat was away.

"We arrived here first, you _Guildies_! Back-off!" one of them shouted as they saw that two of their partners had been downed in an instant.

"I don't think I can do that. I have already received a quest to investigate this place."

"Fucking Guildies I swear," the man whispered but Ainz had caught that, "We were here first, so we have first pick over this place!"

"There is no such rule. Who are you people anyways?"

"We are Roaring Azure, you goddamn guildie."

"Ah, so you all are the goldhounds I've been hearing so much about," Ainz casually stated.

Ainz never knew that Workers could be so hostile.

"Goldhounds? GOLDHOUNDS? HOW DARE YOU!"

"Hm?" Ainz knelt down and rested his greatswords on the ground; he had a feeling that the man was going to blubber something stupid instead of just attacking him.

"You're just some meddling cunts who need permission to do anythi—"

His speech was stopped by Narberal who electrocuted him.

"I apologize, Momon-sa—n," Narberal bowed as the man crumpled to the ground, clearly dead. "He was being disrespectful to you so I—"

Ainz sighed, "It's alright, Nabe. Anyways…" he looked down at the dead body and back at the corpse's teammates who all took a step back in fear

All except for the one he presumed was the healer of the group who proceeded to heal the blabbermouth guy.

"You should have said that from the beginning instead of attacking me out of the blue."

"Kkh, y-you were the ones who stepped in where you don't belong."

"I don't think this conversation will get anywhere, so let's make a deal instead."

"What kind of deal?"

"You can claim this place if you want. After all this is something that no one has ever seen before," Ainz said, "Whatever you take, I get the rest. How does that sound?"

"Then what if we take everything?"

"Well, you can do that too. All I needed to do was to investigate the place in accordance to what the quest has asked of me."

"Hmph, just stay out of the way then, _Adventurer_," the man began to sneer before his remaining companion jabbed him in the stomach.

"Pst! Dumbass, he just beat the shit out of all of us! Are you really going to talk back to him when he's going to let us loot the place?" the companion hissed.

At the companion's statement, Ainz's blood boiled in fury.

'_You? Rob OUR home? You're not going to come out alive.'_

"In that case, please go on ahead," Ainz stiffly gestured towards the entrance to the decoy Nazarick, his emotional suppression barely holding down his rage.

The leader gave Ainz a dirty look before he passed through the entrance

"Fucking guildie, thinking he's so high and mighty," the companion scoffed as he followed his leader.

Once the two had passed through the door, Ainz promised himself that they would not see the light of day ever again.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

Tiamat was sitting on the left windowsill with her staff on her lap.

It had been hours since they left the village to continue on to the Capital. One soldier had kindly kept her company the whole journey as he told her stories of his life, and she listened to the soldier's story intently with a smile on her face.

Gazef, who had positioned himself at her right window sill, was taking note of his surroundings for anything out of place, but he couldn't help but to eavesdrop on their conversation. He knew that she didn't need his powers or protection, but she was far too trusting of strangers: a worry that grew greater, especially after last night's incident.

If he hadn't been keeping watch over the window, he wouldn't have known that she would have jumped.

Her demeanour exuded the aura of a sheltered Princess or a Noble's Daughter, but when Gazef saw her jump out of that window with precision and agility, he knew his first impression was wrong.

He almost smirked a little at the memory of her in just a night gown and a simple cloak, opening up the window and jumping without a care in the world. Her face didn't even register that she could get attacked in unknown territory.

Well, at least he knew she was capable enough to protect herself without him around.

The windows of the carriage were wide open, letting fresh air sweep through it. Usually, the light of the evening sun would be reflected on the glass windows and he or his soldiers wouldn't be able to see inside the carriage at all. Yet, the Priestess was letting him and his soldiers see the interior of the carriage and her by extension.

It was a privilege that the nobles wouldn't even give to their closest soldier.

As they travelled along the road, she had listened to a fair share of his men's stories and responded with the same level of enthusiasm.

"That's how I knew I made a horrible mistake!" one of his men said while flailing one of his arms, as the other was clutching the reins of his horse.

Embarrassment warred with panic inside Gazef as he fought the urge to just stop his men from talking: especially about that particular story. He looked intently at her but couldn't make out her expression since her head was turned the other way.

"Now I don't know what to do," the same man admitted to the Priestess.

"I agree. No wonder she punched you, I think you deserved it!" she scolded him but her tone was filled with amusement.

He shrugged, "I know, but _damn_, she was the best fuck of my life. I knew I fell in love with her at that moment," his face was distant, letting her know exactly what he was thinking of.

The warmth in Gazef's chest grew as he watched them talk. Even if his men were speaking of subjects crude and unbefitting of a Lady, she didn't get mad or offended. On the contrary, she was laughing along with them.

"Just tell her the truth, Jacques."

His comrade's eyes widened, staring into brilliant amethyst looking for any sign of dishonesty, but he couldn't find anything but innocence.

'_Really,'_ Gazef sighed. His men should have expected such purity, considering the Priestess's personality.

"You know I can't do that," Jacques's voice came out in a weak whisper.

"Do you have another girl?"

"Of course not, she's my one and only!" he exclaimed proudly, his arms stretching outward dramatically before quickly returning to the horse reins.

"Then I see no reason why you can't tell her that you love her," she smiled as she looked into his downcast eyes, "Do you want to hear a secret?"

"A secret?"

"Yup. Just one teeny tiny secret that will benefit you."

Gazef saw how Jacques's eyes lit up, "And that is?"

"Telling the truth is the most effective strategy against a woman, especially if she feels upset. Lying about it could be an effective strategy, but if she ever finds out, then you better watch out, because she'll be upset about the initial issue _and_ the deception."

His expression suddenly turned serious and he leaned closer to her. "Her birthday is in four days, should I tell her then?"

The Priestess gasped, "That would be _perfect_!" she gushed, "Have you thought about what to give her for her birthday?"

His face was filled with sadness at the question, "I haven't," he answered with a frown.

The Priestess turned to look at Gazef with wary eyes before she turned back to Jacques and leaned in to whisper loudly in his ears.

Because of her enhanced hearing, even the most minute sounds were amplified. As a result, she thought that no one would be able to hear her whispering since all she could hear was the sound of horses galloping.

"I have something that you could give to her, but you have to promise that this will stay a secret between the two of us."

Gazef had definitely heard that, and he unconsciously leaned towards the pair in curiosity.

Jacques furrowed his eyebrows, "That would depend on what the secret is, because I'm not keeping a secret from my girl."

Tiamat smiled at him, "Trust me, it's nothing life threatening," and after hearing that, Jacques nodded.

Excited, Tiamat rummaged through her inventory to find the little raw sapphire she had swiped in secret from the Marquis's gem mine, and handed it to him.

"P-Priestess-sama...this is—"

"Sshhhh!" Tiamat put her index finger on her lips, reminding him that it was a secret, and continued whispering to him, "Remember, it's a secret, okay? You can do what you want with the gem. Since it's unpolished, you can do pretty much anything with it."

"Priestess-sama, this is a _gem_. Something someone of my stature couldn't possibly afford," Jacques refused the offer and returned the gem back to her palm.

"Oh…" Tiamat thought about it for a few moments, "Then, the secret is off. You can just tell everyone that its a gift from me!"

"W-What?! Is this alright?"

Gazef relaxed his shoulders, '_Thank goodness it wasn't something dangerous.'_

He shivered at the memory of the Priestess jumping out the window and blowing up an entire clearing just to 'play'. She was someone that definitely could not be predicted.

He was thankful that this 'secret' was nothing like what he had experienced yesterday.

"Of course! I can tell that you love her a lot. When you were talking about her, you've been smiling the whole time. If that's not love, then I don't know what love is."

The guy behind them snorted. "You should've heard about when he first saw her for the first time, Priestess-sama. He was—"

Gazef cleared his throat, and his soldiers immediately straightened up. "Focus," he simply told them, which they responded with a 'Hai!'.

"I'm sorry about that Hannah-sama. Sometimes my men can be...noisy," Gazef sighed.

"Oh no, it's alright. I don't mind," she shifted to the middle seat and made herself comfortable. "The stories they've been telling me were super exciting! I'm glad your soldiers wanted to share these stories with me."

His eyes softened at her statement, "Please bear with them for a bit longer. In a couple hours, we will be arriving at the Capital. For now, please take a break."

"I'm not tired though," she puffed her cheeks, "I really wanted to hear what happened when he saw her for the first time."

"Rest, Hannah-sama. You will need all your energy to talk in the Royal Court the next morning."

"Aww, fine. But only because you told me, Gazef-san," Tiamat took a deep breath, letting herself smell the wonderful wind before closing the window.

Being alone in the carriage by herself was boring, which was why she was so thankful that the soldiers were willing to talk to her for the entire day. But Gazef was right, she needed all her energy to figure out what the King wanted.

"It looks like we're here, Hannah-sama," Gazef inadvertently jolted her out of her pondering.

Tiamat looked outside of the carriage as it slowly came to a halt before the castle gates.

The latticed grill made out of metal fortified the entrances to the castle. Tiamat was familiar with the gate as it was often used in fantasy game settings.

'_A real portcullis!' _

Two armored men stood in front of the gate, and one bellowed, "Halt! Who goes?" causing Tiamat to look at him as the other sentry approached Gazef.

"At ease, John," Gazef got off his horse and shook the man's hand.

"Warrior-Captain-dono! How was the trip?" the sentry Tiamat presumed to be John broke out into a bright smile as he pulled Gazef in for a hug.

"Oh, you know, the usual," Gazef grinned as he patted the man twice on the back before letting go, "Frightening monsters and bandits every step of the way."

"Even if that was true," the man smirked at Gazef as he returned to his position and motioned for the men behind the gate to raise the portcullis. "They would be no match for you, Warrior-Captain-dono."

"You praise me far too much," Gazef humbly replied, "Most of my missions would've ended in failure without the help of my men."

"And you sell yourself too short, Warrior-Captain-dono. In any case, I won't keep His Majesty waiting for you any longer. I wish you luck with those snakes," John saluted.

"You as well, John," Gazef hopped back onto his horse, and the carriage moved pass the portcullis and into the castle courtyard.

Tiamat poked her head out of the window once more, "You're really close with the people here, Gazef-san."

Gazef turned his head towards her, "They are good people who devoted their lives to the Kingdom and its people. If I treated them like scum even after knowing that, I would be the worst sort of trash imaginable."

Tiamat hummed in acknowledgement, "That's very kind of you, Gazef-san."

"How so?"

"Despite your status, you still treat them as one of your own. Usually people with your title wouldn't even bother…" Tiamat casted her eyes downwards, remembering how the Marquis had treated his workers in the gem mines.

Gazef went quiet for a bit, the sound of galloping horses filling the silence until he replied, "This title was not passed down to me, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat tilted her head, urging him to continue.

"I used to be a commoner, born in a frontier village. I'm not a noble, born with a silver spoon, and I worked to the best of my capabilities to fulfill my responsibilities to the King. Despite the flashy title, I am the same as them, a simple commoner," he gave her a sad watery smile, "No one here is born lucky; instead, they're lucky just to escape the circumstances of their birth."

She stared at him, looking deeply into his warm brown eyes.

"Knowing this fact, will you treat me differently than before, Hannah-sama?" he asked.

How despicable of him.

He knew that this question was undoubtedly rude of him. The very nature of the question was cunning and deceitful; he knew that no matter what answer the Priestess gave him, it would only be beautiful to the ears.

If she answered with a yes, which was impossible judging by what he had seen so far, then he would be thoroughly disappointed because everything she had showed him would have been a lie.

If she said no, he knew that she could possibly be lying since he was the King's personal guard, and in his position he had seen so many people tell falsehood just so that they can curry some favors from the King _through_ him.

He grimaced, regretting his question.

"I apologi—"

"So what?"

Gazef widened his eyes, "Excuse me?"

She huffed, "So what if you were born a commoner? A person's value is not determined by what family he was born into or how much money he possesses. It's how you treat others that determine your worth as a human being. From what I can see, you are an impressive human being, Gazef-san."

Gazef's jaw dropped open as the Priestess smiled at him. He didn't expect such an honest response from the Priestess. For her to be so blunt about what she thought…

How unpredictable.

"That's just like you to answer like that," Gazef muttered, but his voice was swallowed by the sound of horses neighing as they skidded to a stop.

"Could you repeat that, Gazef-san? I didn't quite catch that."

"We're here," he simply replied, climbing down from his horse.

The carriage came to a gentle stop before the entrance to the castle. Gazef opened the door to the carriage, and Tiamat stepped out from the transport vessel.

Before them was a large set of stairs that led to two titanic oaken doors reinforced with steel. At each step on the staircase, there was a soldier with a spear watching their every move.

Tiamat climbed up the staircase with Gazef at her side and the rest of his men followed behind them. She sweatdropped as she looked at one of the soldiers only for him to stare unresponsively into the distance.

'_Right, they're on the job. I should probably stop staring at them,' _Tiamat awkwardly lowered her gaze.

Finally, the entourage reached the grand doors of the castle, and in front of it were two guards: one on the left and right side of the door respectively, who were ready to open it at a moment's notice.

Gazef nodded to the guards at the door, and they nodded back, pushing open the double doors as they did.

"Welcome back, Warrior-Captain-dono," an entourage of maids bowed as Tiamat, Gazef, and his men moved down the hallway.

"Thank you," Gazef raised his hand before waving it in Tiamat's direction, "Could you take our guest to the room His Majesty set aside for visitors?"

A maid with short blonde hair and doe-like eyes walked forward in front of Tiamat and bowed.

"Welcome to the Capital, Hannah-sama. I am Julie Ert Hartbow, and I will be preparing you for your meeting with His Majesty and the Royal Court tomorrow. Now, if you would follow me," Julie bowed again before turning around to walk down the carpeted hallway.

"In that case, I will be heading to His Majesty's chambers. I wish all of you a good evening."

Tiamat looked helplessly after Gazef who motioned for her to follow the maid.

"A-Ah, yes!" Tiamat hurriedly walked after Julie. The rest of the maids glanced at her with an odd expression on their places.

Gazef waited until the Priestess had disappeared down the hallway before he turned down the opposing hallway to his next destination.

He passed by countless display cases of the Royal Family's heirlooms: artifacts of tremendous worth ranging from swords adorned with sparkling gems, bows blessed with filigree of holy silver, intricately engraved chalices of pure gold, among many others.

Suddenly, he stopped and looked up at the wall.

Before him was a portrait of King Ramposa III in his youth. Gazef could see the wisdom glinting in his eyes, eyes unburdened by the weight of time. The painting's blonde hair was a stark contrast to the King's current white, another testament to the suffering the King had undergone.

Gazef could still remember how incredible the King looked when he was in the annual war against the Baharuth Empire.

But that was decades ago. Now the King was struggling to juggle his duties as a King and a father, especially with the coming of age of the youngest Princess. Furthermore, he had to devise a way to pass the Kingdom down to his most competent son.

Moving away from the painting, Gazef continued trudging on through the familiar hallway before he finally arrived before the King's chambers, guarded by two soldiers from his Warrior-Band.

Giving his men a nod, Gazef knocked two times on the plain and ordinary door.

"Come in," the muffled voice of the King filtered through the door and Gazef obliged, opening the door slowly before gently closing it.

Once he was inside the room, he noticed that the King was already preparing himself to rest. The room was dark and was lit by nothing but a single candle by his bedside. The King himself was wearing his nightgown, ready to end the day.

"I have returned, Your Majesty," he bowed.

"Well done, Gazef."

Gazef smiled at the King's casual response, a privilege that he got to bask in private with the King.

"The Priestess has been escorted to one of the guest rooms by a maid and has retired for the night, Your Majesty."

"Come on now, Gazef. There is no one around, you don't have to be so polite with me."

Gazef lifted his head with a smile. As expected of the King himself, "I understand, Ramposa-sama."

Ramposa III smiled at him, his hands on his lap and his eyes still inquisitive despite his age, "So, tell me Gazef. What do you think of the Priestess?"

Gazef chuckled, "She is not a person one would expect."

"What do you mean by that?" the King's eyes twinkled curiously.

"Based on her appearance, you would think that she belongs to a Noble Family, but it turns out she is just like any other normal person. She's a very friendly individual, and I'm sure some of my soldiers are smitten by now. However, despite the status that she has, she's not condescending, and I would go so far as to say that she is humbler than what you would expect, Ramposa-sama."

"Is that so?" Ramposa sighed, leaning his back into his pillows even more, "Will she be able to handle the wickedness of the Royal Court?" Gazef caught the King murmuring.

"I believe so. Despite her kind and easygoing nature, I have faith in her spirit."

Ramposa smiled, "I trust you, Gazef. Well, you can leave me for the night and get some rest. You've earned it."

"Understood, Ramposa-sama, good night," he bowed once again and exited the room.

But instead of leaving like what the King had ordered him to do, he stayed outside his door until morning came.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

Two loud knocks on the wooden door woke her from her slumber.

"Please excuse me, Hannah-sama."

"Mn…" she quickly sat up from her sleeping position and rubbed her eyes, the soft cotton fabric under her skin brushing against her.

Cotton...fabric?

Tiamat slowly took her time to adjust to the dark room as she heard the sound of footsteps approaching the room where she was currently sleeping.

Once her blurry eyes could finally see what was in front of her, she saw that she was in an unfamiliar room and was immediately reminded that she had just arrived at the castle last night. She recalled being escorted by the handmaiden into the new room and was left alone so that she can get some rest.

The room was filled with personality, that's for sure.

It was a chintz nightmare of frills and flowers—pink and orange everywhere.

Once the Eight Edged Assassin had placed himself on top of the high ceiling, Tiamat had immediately crashed onto the bed, tired and weary after the long journey where she was constantly jostled about by the carriage.

She remembered falling asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

Only to be woken up a few hours later by the maids of the castle.

The spider above her raised his blades to attack whoever dared to disturb the Supreme Being's rest.

Tiamat, who saw that the spider was preparing himself for a massacre, yelled at the people outside in panic.

"No, wait! Don't come in!"

"But we need to prepare you for your attendance with the King later this morning," a woman, a maid Tiamat presumed, told her from behind the door.

"I understand, but give me a minute!" she said in reply and looked at the spider above her.

"They have disturbed your rest, My Lady. I shall kill them all."

"No," she whispered, "These people are probably the handmaidens of this castle. If someone is _actually _attacking me, I'll protect myself with 『Aegis』and you can slash them down, okay?"

The spider put his blades away, "If that is your will, My Lady."

Tiamat breathed a sigh of relief. There would be no massacre this morning at least. She got a headache just thinking about the consequences of such a disaster.

She got out of bed before realizing that she was still in her Priestess garb: its fabric already creased beyond compare.

'_Yup, definitely can't wear this in front of a bunch of rich people.'_

She reached into her inventory and changed her outfit to the nightgown that she kept there, smoothing it out.

Tiamat cleared her throat, "Come in!"

The moment the words left her mouth, the handmaidens flocked inside the unusually big room. The Eight-Edged Assassin tensed, preparing for the worst, and prepared to strike anyone that was a potential danger. Tiamat looked up at the spider and give him a smile, mouthing to him that everything was alright.

"Good morning, Hannah-sama," the handmaidens said simultaneously.

"G-Good morning…"

Tiamat looked at the walls for a clock and saw none.

"What time is it?"

"It's about four in the morning, Hannah-sama," one of the maids spoke out.

"F-Four?!"

"Yes, as we have said before, we need to prepare you for your audience with the King."

Tiamat hummed in understanding, but internally, she was screaming.

'_No one should wake up at Four-o-fucking-clock in the morning!'_

"I see, but it's alright. I don't need your help to prepare, I—"

"We insist, Hannah-sama, you are an honored guest of the King," the maid bowed and the others followed, "We are here to serve."

"I-I can prepare by my—"

"Ladies, quickly get the bath prepared. On an important day like this, no matter how early we start, there won't be nearly enough time!"

The maids quickly moved towards the door to what Tiamat presumed was the bathroom and soon the sound of running water was heard.

"Excuse me, Hannah-sama," one maid pulled her nightgown down, exposing her entire naked body for all to see.

"N-N-No, wa-wait!" she attempted to cover what was left of her dignity with her arms.

The Assassin above her prepared his blades.

Tiamat wanted to commit seppuku.

If she continued to flail against the maids, she was afraid that the Eight-Edged Assassin might get the wrong idea and proceed to kill all of them. Tiamat had no option but to give in to the maids.

She dropped her arms and was dragged to the bathroom.

As she sat inside the tub, one maid doused her with water, while the other applied what she presumed was a perfume and yet another one put flower petals inside the bathtub.

"Hannah-sama, please relax your shoulders!"

"Where did the aromatic oil go? I need to put it on her hair!" one maid shouted above the clamor.

"Should I put in more medicinal herbs?" another maid asked her.

"Put more flower petals too!"

"Here," one of the maids returned with some sort of vial that Tiamat could only assume was the aromatic oil to the maid who was washing her hair.

"We're almost finished bathing her!" one announced.

"Wait, we need more time with the dress preparation!"

"Where is the rose water?"

"Bring the small brush!"

"Are these all the brushes?"

"Is the dress ready?!"

"Bring some flowers over here!"

Tiamat could feel a migraine starting to grow in the back of her head.

It seemed that she had been underestimating just how important an audience with the King was.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

The King's Throne Room was filled with a palpable energy.

Despite the humble atmosphere of the room itself, the Nobles were uncharacteristically more excited than usual.

They were going to have a famed hero in their midst. It had been decades since an Adamantite Adventurer had entered the Royal Court.

All of them were animatedly whispering to their neighbors, eager to finally lay their eyes upon the source of so many rumors.

"Enter, Adamantite Adventurer, Hannah Annafelowz," the civil officer boomed, announcing the hero's name for all to hear.

They heard a shuffle behind the door, and sooner than they expected, one of the maids opened the door for the hero to enter the room.

As soon as they laid their eyes on her, they felt like they were in a trance. Their eyes were stuck to her in absolute awe.

Her wavy silver hair was put in a delicate yet elegant updo, leaving some of the strands of her hair down to frame her face. The long sleeved dark blue dress that lightly brushed against the floor was elegant in its simplicity.

As she twirled around, the dress swished, following her movements. The skirt was consisted of several ruffled tiers of white hidden by the dark blue of the dress itself. The whispering silver hiding amongst the navy-blue reminded them of stars peeping through a darkening sky.

She looked like an aristocratic doll that everyone couldn't help but to adore.

Even though she was standing in front of an impressive crowd, she exuded an air of calm and gentle elegance. No wonder people had gossiped of her being from a foreign royal family.

She looked forward and walked with confidence and grace. She didn't even bother to stop to give them all a smile before she stopped short, just a few meters away before the stairs that led to the Throne.

"Your Majesty," she said with her head down; she was curtsying so low—lower than any noble would dare to— to the point they were sure that she was almost sitting on the floor.

Even though she said she was from humble origins, they had their doubts. The easiest way for a noble to judge whether someone belongs to their circle was based on their etiquette. The Priestess definitely knew how to correctly address the King, and she also stopped a few meters before the Throne, a sign that she knew that her status right now was that of a commoner's.

Only a Duke, the highest rank of noble below the Royal Family, would curtsy directly in front of the Throne.

"Welcome to our humble castle, Hannah-sama," the King replied to her, smiling appreciatively at her manners.

She was beautiful, the epitome of femininity with her dress and translucent, flawless skin. Her sweet voice rang like a crystalline bell.

"Thank you for inviting me to the castle, Your Majesty."

The King stood up from his Throne, which caused a large murmur to arise from the nobles of the Kingdom.

Usually, the King would sit as he conducted his business, a sign of supremacy and dignity. Afterall, monarchs had always been held in the highest regard and treated with reverence and deference. By standing to receive his guest, the King was relinquishing that.

Despite all that, Ramposa continued down the stairs of his Throne before stopping just in front of her.

"Please stand up, Hannah the Adamantite Adventurer," he said with a strong yet soft voice. As the Priestess stood up, her amethyst eyes landed on his blue. "I am the ruler of this Kingdom, Ramposa III. First of all, I would like to apologize for suddenly summoning you to our castle."

She moved her hand in front of her, right on top of the left, and smiled at the King, "There is no need for you to apologize, Your Majesty."

"Secondly, I would like to thank you for saving Gazef and his troops," the King bowed to her, "Thank you very much."

At that instant, the nobles could see the shock on the Adamantite Adventurer's face at the King's conduct. If the King himself, the highest of royalties bowed, the rest of the nobles would do the same. For someone like him to bow to a mere commoner like her just because she saved that warrior dog of his? There was no way they would do that, even if it was the Royal Protocol.

That was until Marquis Blumrush and Marquis Raeven, two of the Six Great Nobles, bowed, the rest of them followed.

The Six Great Nobles were a political faction within Re-Estize Kingdom that competed with Re-Estize Royal Family for control of the nation. In fact, they were considered the second most influential group just after the Royal Family themselves. Therefore, they had become the standard by which the nobles compared themselves to.

If the Blumrush and Raeven didn't bow and remained standing upright, then the rest of the nobles would follow their example.

"Please raise your head, I only did what any person would do," she panickedly shook her hands, and everyone did as the tension in the room slightly lightened.

"No one would do what you have done, Hannah-san. As you might know, the Warrior Captain is my right hand man," the nobles gritted their teeth at that, "It was a noble act indeed, for you to have selflessly placed yourself in danger to rescue him and his men. That was why I have invited you here. I want to give you a reward. Is there anything you want?"

The murmurs amongst them grew stronger.

As soon as they heard the King's proposition, they immediately imagined themselves in the Adventurer's position, asking the King for wealth and gems beyond compare, perhaps a rich piece of land near the port, a raise in rank, or to offer themselves as a marriage partner to Princess Renner because they knew that whoever married the Princess would have a better chance of becoming the King.

They were pitiful beasts no larger than grass snakes that sat curled around the bones of their victims. Their eyes were nasty and vicious and painted yellow with jealousy. Their hunger could never be satisfied and they would do anything, _anything, _in their power to fill their endless appetite.

However, she just continued to smile at the King as an awkward pause filled the room.

"You can ask for titles or land. You can have anything you want as long as we can provide it," the King suggested which caused some of the nobles to perk up when they heard him.

When the King was rewarding someone with land, that meant that he was rewarding them with a title or vice versa. One could not exist without the other, for the master of the land could only be the nobles themselves. If she were to become one of them in this Kingdom, they could propose their son or even themselves to marry her. Of course, they would attain an unimaginable beauty, envied by all. But the secret was beyond that; they could gain power and strength.

The great power of a Holy Dragon that was said to be the beloved pet of a Goddess.

Some of them smiled at the news.

However, she replied, "I don't need any of those things, Your Majesty."

Even the King's eyes went wide at her statement.

"Then platinum coins? Gems perhaps?"

She chuckled, "Funny thing is, I just finished a quest from Marquis Blumrush the other day, and he had kindly rewarded me with a beautiful Ruby. That's enough for me, Your Majesty."

People immediately looked at Marquis Blumrush who was trying to wipe a smug grin off his face.

That was when the other nobles realized why he had bowed; he had known the Adamantite Adventure before them, giving him an enormous advantage.

Acquainting himself to her.

"Then, what can I reward you with?"

She bowed, "I don't need anything, Your Majesty. Seeing how you cherish the Warrior Captain, to have him by your side is a good enough reward on its own."

Some of the lesser nobles giggled in a low tone, muttering at how idiotic the beautiful woman in front of them was. If it was them standing there, they would have asked for the crown.

But the cunning ones thought otherwise.

The woman in front of them was not to be underestimated.

By refusing the King's offer, she would be left with the King's favor, allowing her to ask for whatever she wanted or needed, and by refusing the gifts, it showed that she was smart enough to avoid options that would restrict her movements and her dragon's.

"I see, then Warrior-Captain, please give her your sigil."

"Your Majesty, the Warrior-Captain's sigil is with me," she declared, plucking the sigil from seemingly nowhere.

The nobles began whispering in hushed voices amongst themselves. For the warrior dog to give away the symbol of his service so casually…

"How do you have that?" the King asked in awe.

She smiled at them, "It seems that Your Majesty and the Warrior-Captain both had the same idea. When I had saved him and his troops, he told me to go find him at the Capital, that is why he gave me his sigil. I hope you are not offended, Your Majesty."

The King chuckled, "No, of course not! I see, the Warrior-Captain had given it to you from the very beginning."

She moved forward to give the warrior dog his sigil back.

"There is no need to return it, Hannah-san. Please keep it. Whenever you need a favor from me, you can come to the castle and show the guards the Warrior-Captain's sigil."

"I understand," she bowed, "Thank you for being so gracious, Your Majesty."

"It was I who is supposed to say that, Hannah-san. With that being said, my daughter is excited to meet you," the King gently smiled, "The Warrior-Captain will lead you to the Rose Garden."

Gazef bowed and walked out from behind the King to take his place next to the woman.

"It will be a pleasure to finally meet the Princess," the Priestess made a low courtesy once again before walking backwards a few steps and turning herself around to walk out of the door, with the warrior-dog following behind her.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

Once the door of the Throne Room were closed, Tiamat sighed in relief.

"That was intense."

"I disagree, you did a very good job there, Hannah-sama."

Tiamat smiled at Gazef as they walked down the long corridor, which was decorated with a vast host of paintings of past Kings, heroes, and nobles of the Kingdom. All of the paintings seemed to be staring down at her with their eyes full of graveness.

If Gazef and the Assassin weren't there, she would've been a complete nervous wreck.

"Thank you, Gazef-san. But you won't believe how nervous I was there…"

She knew she was supposed to stop in front of the stairs just like in those fantasy dramas and animes about the Royal Court, but her knees had buckled and she fell short, just a little distance away before the stairs themselves. She had almost screamed out, embarrassed by the situation, and had to lower her head so that people couldn't see her expression.

Plus, she had never had so many eyes on her, and her nervousness only increased when she realized that she was the only woman inside that room. Thankfully, her error was lessened by the presence of the trusty Eight Edged Assassin. He had lifted up his blade as her knees buckled, so that she curtsied just low enough that no one could tell.

"You could have convinced me otherwise," Gazef complimented, "Now, shall we, Hannah-sama?"

"Of course, Gazef-san lets—"

"Excuse me, Hannah-sama," someone said from the other side of the corridor.

Tiamat turned her head back to see that it was some of the nobles who had been snickering earlier. Not knowing what to say, she bowed to them instead.

The entourage were dressed in tacky outfits with frills sticking from every corner of their body. Their faces were filled with the confidence of people who have had everything go their way since birth.

"Hannah-sama, please allow us to escort you to the Rose Garden instead."

Tiamat tilted her head.

'_The King told Gazef to escort me though… wouldn't they be disobeying a direct order?'_

She suddenly felt extremely weary, "There is no need. After all, the King had—"

The man who was standing at the forefront of his entourage widened his grin, "You see, Hannah-sama, the Warrior-Captain isn't fit to guide someone of your status. He is a commoner, and therefore he doesn't deserve to escort a beautiful maiden such as yourself. That's why you should let us escort you instead."

The way they smiled at her, she hated it. Their arrogant condescension, boldness, temerity, insensitive audacity; all of it just awoke a deep seated hatred within herself. They thought they were better than Gazef just because they were born with money.

Gazef was someone a person like them could never empathize with. They might know how to spend their money, but they wouldn't know how much a single coin could mean to some people.

Hard times make a human into a better person.

How hard it must have been for Gazef to have endured all he did until he had reached where he was: the King's personal guard.

Tiamat looked up at them, making sure she looked at each and every one of them in the eye, smiling as she did so.

Their grins widened; they knew that someone like her would know how worthless the warrior dog was.

"Gentlemen," their eyes glinted happily as soon as she had sweetly addressed them. However the next sentence she uttered shocked them to the core, "I have not lived a privileged life as you seem to think. I only learned how to read and write a few weeks ago. If your upbringing limits the circle of people you interact with, then I suggest you do not get involved with me. Shall we, Gazef-san?"

Gazef looked at her in astonishment, but his mouth slowly morphed into a smile as he nodded at her. They walked away from the wide-eyed nobles who clicked their tongues at the lost opportunity.

It seemed that the rumors surrounding the Priestess could not be trusted.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

Gazef led her towards where the Rose Garden was located, steering their way to the long hallways of the castle grounds.

However as he took another step forward, he saw a wide figure at the end of the hallway walking out from the Garden.

Before them stood a chubby young man with blonde hair down to his chin. Despite his unathletic appearance, his eyes were filled with a sharp intelligence that reminded Gazef that this man was not to be underestimated.

The Second Prince of the Kingdom, Zanac Valleon Igana Ryle Vaiself.

As per custom, Gazef stopped—the Silver Priestess coming to a halt a moment later—and nodded his head to the Second Prince.

"Oya, if it isn't The Warrior Captain himself." Zanac greeted him.

"My Prince."

His slanted eyes looked down at Gazef, "What are you doing in this part of the castle?"

Gazef steadily held the Prince's gaze, "I am here to escort the Silver Priestess to the Rose Garden, as per ordered by the King himself."

Zanac tilted his body slightly to see the person behind Gazef's bulky figure and his eyes widened in surprise.

As the Second Prince, he had seen his fair share of beautiful women before, but he had to agree that this person was the most beautiful of them all.

When she bowed, she exuded an elegance fitting of the highest of nobles, and when she lifted her face upwards, it was as if he had seen the Fairy Queen herself.

"My Prince," she greeted.

"So this is the Silver Priestess?" Zanac lifted his eyebrow, "What has Father called you here for?"

"The King was thanking her for saving me and my men back at Carne Village."

"Is that so? What do you say to that, Priestess-san?"

Undeterred by the Prince's intense scrutiny, the Priestess answered confidently, "Yes, the Warrior-Captain is right, Zanac-san," Tiamat agreed, "The King just wanted to thank me for saving Gazef and his friends."

Gazef could see the Prince scrunch up his nose while his eyes wandered up to the ceiling, as if he was trying to remember what had happened to the Warrior-Captain. In the end, it seemed that he didn't come up with anything; perhaps the primary reason why he decided to change the topic.

"In that case, I thank you for helping Gazef-san. By the way, I presume that you're going to go meet my monster of a sister?"

"Monster?" Tiamat stared at the Prince in confusion.

"You don't know? Well, either you'll find out soon or you'll be fooled just like everyone else. In any case, I have to meet with someone. I suppose I'll see you two around," Zanac walked down the hallway and past the two.

Tiamat suppressed a shudder up her spine when she saw that the Prince's eyes lingered on her for longer than necessary. It was as if he was trying to burn her silhouette deep inside his brain.

She felt like she was being sized up, down to even the most miniscule detail. Either it was purely based on her appearance—facial features, eyes, or hair—or even the choice of clothes that the maids had prepared for her.

At any rate, Tiamat felt like the Prince that was passing her by had already made up his mind about who she was.

He smirked, openly revealing his intentions, "It is nice to be able to actually put a face on the fabled Silver Priestess," he said before he left, leaving Gazef and Tiamat alone in the hallway.

"Don't mind his statements too much, Hannah-sama," Gazef turned his head to the Priestess with an apologetic smile on his face, "Princess Renner is a wonderful person, and I'm sure the two of you will get along just fine."

"If you say so…." Tiamat awkwardly nodded.

"In any case, we shouldn't keep the Princess waiting any longer. Please don't get lost, Hannah-sama. The Rose Garden is rather large," Gazef continued down the hallway, Silvery Priestess in tow.

(ｏ´・ε・｀ｏ)

Tiamat had always loved flowers.

The idea of blowsy, precocious, and seductive colors that bloomed in Spring and hid themselves in winter was a fascinating one. To think that such small things had the power to enchant the hearts of people no matter where they were was truly astounding.

She personally believed that a beautiful garden belonged on balustrades and pergolas in gardens like Heale House in Wiltshire and Hestercombe in Somerset. Of course, she had only seen pictures of those places on the Internet.

With the destroyed climate however, there was no way she could enjoy that on Earth.

She remembered a Hindu legend where Vishnu convinced Brahma of the rose's superiority to the lotus, and as a reward for changing his mind, Brahma created a bride for Vishnu out of hundreds of rose petals. It was one of the very few things she remembered from Tabula's ramblings.

Tiamat had only seen lotuses and roses from the internet, but there was no way she was able to afford such a luxury on a plant that would die in a few weeks time. So she didn't know how their beauty would cause the Hindu gods to fight over them.

Until now.

The scene in front of her was beyond amazing. It was interplanted with all types of flowering perennials, trees and shrubs, alive with buzzing insects, chirping birds, and her keen nose enjoyed itself as it was blanketed in lovely scents.

"—nah-sama, Hannah-sama."

"Y-Yes!" through her veil bliss from seeing a real, _live_, garden for the first time, she had completely blocked out all other sounds and had not heard Gazef calling for her over and over again.

"Is there something wrong, Hannah-sama?" he had stopped in his tracks and turned around to look at her.

Tiamat gave him a sheepish smile, "Sorry about that, Gazef-san, but this is my first time seeing such a beautiful garden," she looked away once again to appreciate the view around her and to etch the image in her memory.

"I understand," someone other than Gazef had responded to her statement, and Tiamat couldn't help but to turn her head to the source of the voice, "That was also my first reaction when I first saw the garden."

Tiamat saw a young man in his teenage years, clad in a suit of pure white armor with bushy eyebrows sprouting above his impassive eyes. His eyes were firm, an unyielding blue, as if it was forged from steel, and his skin was tanned by the sun, while his blond hair was neatly trimmed short.

"Hannah-sama, this is Climb, the personal bodyguard of Princess Renner," Gazef introduced him to her, "And Climb, this is the Adamantite Adventurer, the Silver Priestess, Hannah Annafelowz."

She paused to look at him.

'_Waa, what a kind looking boy."_

Despite his furrowed eyebrows, he had an innocent expression; honest and pure. No matter how bulky his armor made him look, his baby cheeks were still prominent, making him look even cuter.

'_It's like a baby wearing a suit of armor. I should get Aura and Mare to wear some too...'_

Since Tiamat took her time to see his features, they took it as a sign that Climb should introduce himself first. And so he did.

"Nice to meet you, Hannah-sama."

However, Tiamat didn't say anything but instead stepped closer towards the boy, and pinched his cheeks.

"H-H-Hannah-shamaaa…?!"

"S-Sorry. I couldn't help myself," she moved her fingers away from his cheek and bowed as well, smiling at the boy, "Nice to meet you too, Climb-kun!"

It had been weeks now since Ainz and her had arrived in the New World. She realized that she was being spoiled, especially when she was playing with Aura and Mare, who readily gave their chubby cheeks for her to pinch. For her to do that to a complete stranger, no matter how cute he or she was, was just plain rude.

Tiamat looked apologetically at Climb.

'_AAAAH, I hope I didn't offend him.'_

"Hannah-sama," Gazef chastised her, "Even if Climb might look young, he has been honing himself little by little to get to where he is today. Of course his skills might still need some work, but Climb is still a knight in his own right."

"Amazing, Climb-kun!" Tiamat gushed. For him to be training himself until he was strong enough to guard the Princess, he must have trained from a really young age.

The boy blushed as bright as the roses in the garden, "T-Thank you, Hannah-sama."

"This is where I must part with you, Hannah-sama. After this, Climb will guide you to where the Princess and her companions are waiting."

"I see, thank you for escorting me here safely Gazef-san," Tiamat walked to where Climb stood and watched as Gazef left the corridor. Tiamat smiled at the boy next to her, "Shall we go then, Climb-kun?"

Even though he was still blushing, he cleared his throat and nodded, leading them down towards the corridor.

As Tiamat observed the splendor of the corridor—the arbor that grew above it, with its myriad of orchids and roses—she tried to make small talk with Climb to ease the situation.

"How old are you Climb-kun?"

Thankfully, he was kind enough to answer her question, "I am fifteen years old, Hannah-sama."

"Fifteen years old and already the Princess's Guard? That's incredible, Climb-kun!

"My achievement is nothing," he answered, his voice suddenly turning cold, "I still have a long way to go."

Immediately, the conversation lost its warmth.

'_Did I say something wrong? I was just complimenting him though… Ah, maybe he doesn't like being treated as a kid,' _Tiamat let out a small sigh. '_Teenagers…'_

The spider behind her raised his blade to kill the boy.

Tiamat shuddered and held the blades back with the palm of her hand, "It's my fault, it's my fault!" she whispered.

"He had answered your question with a disrespectful tone. He must _die_," the spider tried to reason with the Supreme Being.

"_Nonononono_, that's not how this works. That's not how any of this works!"

Climb turned back to look at the Silver Priestess, curious as to why she was mumbling to herself, "Hannah-sama?"

Apparently she was looking behind her, and so Climb tilted his head only to see nothing but the usual empty corridor. "What is it?" he asked.

"N-Nothing Climb-kun, don't worry about it," Tiamat put her hand behind her as she tried to hold the blade away from Climb as he walked nearer.

"This puny human didn't even use honorifics!"

The spider moved to swing his blade once again, but Tiamat blocked his path, holding his blade even tighter to stop his movements. The spider tried as hard as he could to pull the blade out of the Supreme Being's grasp without harming her in the process.

Climb was even more confused now, especially since he couldn't hear the Eight-Edged Assassin due to its passive『Silent Whisper』skill. As a result, only those with a level higher than the Assassin could hear it.

"Is it still far away?" Tiamat asked to Climb, the palm of her hand shaking as she tried to hold the spider back from the boy.

Climb looked at her weirdly but still replied, "Not far now," as he walked back in front of her and led the way.

"Don't attack the boy," Tiamat quietly ordered the spider, who reluctantly obeyed. He lowered his sword, and Tiamat finally released his blade, relieved.

"We are here, Hannah-sama."

Climb knocked on the wooden door, "Renner-sama, I have arrived with the Priestess-sama."

A muffled voice came from the other side of the door, "Oh! Please bring her in then, Climb-kun."

Hearing the Princess's response, Climb moved to open the door.

That was until Tiamat saw a shadow peeking from behind the small opening of the door. A second later, the door was busted outwards, knocking Climb to his back.

He was completely overwhelmed by his current predicament. Gagaran had pushed the door so quickly that he couldn't help but let gravity take control over his body. His surprise morphed into fear as he realized that he was about to get crushed by the woman's tree trunk-like arms.

He willed himself to stand up, but he couldn't manage to move a single muscle. He was the Princess' bodyguard for goodness sake! He knew Gagaran could be childish at times, but to be so easily taken by surprise to the point that he couldn't even stand on his legs was nothing short of embarrassing.

"『Aegis』!" Tiamat reflexively shouted, standing in front of Climb to protect him, seeing that he had made no movement to stand up or ran away from the strange assailant.

Remembering the Supreme Being's order from before, the spider's visage immediately flickered from existence, slicing the large hammered woman away as she tumbled back in pain and surprise since she couldn't see her assailant.

[_Holyshitholyshit_, stand down!] Tiamat panickedly Messaged the Assassin the instant she saw it flicker.

She sincerely thought it was too late, and images of a full out war against her flashed in her head until she realized that the Assassin had managed to redirect its strike from the woman's head before it chose to somersault in front of the translucent golden sphere.

"Stop! You're hurting Climb!" a girl dressed in blue shouted at the others.

A small person hidden by a red cloak and a bizarre mask sighed as she stood up from her chair, "This is what you get for trying to glomp strangers."

"W-Worth it," the large woman, who Tiamat assumed was Gagaran, replied as she tried to hold back the pain. Her stomach had been sliced open and Gagaran was lucky that the spider didn't actually behead her.

[Could you head back to the ceiling now?] Tiamat asked the Assassin, exhausted from the sudden rush of adrenaline.

The Assassin nodded before it hopped back onto the ceiling, keeping watch for anything suspicious.

The twins in ninja outfits had prepared their kunai to attack her.

"Climb-kun, is this really a room that leads to the Princess?" Tiamat asked in a hushed whisper as she helped him up on his feet.

"Yes."

Tiamat's eyes landed on the small girl in the blue dress with long golden hair that draped over the back of her neck. The small girl's eyes—which shone like the sapphire gem Tiamat saw in the mine—were laced with worry.

"Is she the one in the blue dress?"

Climb nodded.

Tiamat eyed the rest warily. There was a woman with long braided hair, twins dressed in some sort of ninja garb, a masked mysterious person, and an injured female Thor.

"Then the rest of them are a threat?"

"No, they are—"

The young woman with blond hair and green eyes stepped up, making sure to stand in front of Gagaran. When she raised her hand, the twins put their kunais away.

"I apologize for my members' rash behavior. I can assure you that we are not a threat to the Princess, the opposite in fact. We are Blue Rose, and I am Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra, the leader of Blue Rose," she smiled confidently at her. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Silver Priestess."

* * *

**A/N: "I have not lived a privileged life as you seem to think. If your upbringing limits the circle of people you interact with, then I suggest you do not get involved with me." -Violet Evergarden, Episode 6. Btw RIP Gagaran.**

**Hackslashbash: Blue Rose finally makes their debut! Also, Gagaran is perfectly fine.**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**elmeted **T**yrant **T**rounces **P**easant **S**od (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**evious **i**nventor **s**parks **c**reation **o**n **r**ejected **d**evices** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	26. CHAPTER 26: A Garden of Silvery Blue

**Hackslashbash****: And the winner of our second omake event is ****Regal Inferno****! Thank you for taking the time to produce such a wonderful bit of writing! If you guys want to participate in these competitions, hop into our Discord! ****H**elmeted **T**yrant **T**rounces **P**easant **S**od (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**evious **i**nventor **s**parks **c**reation **o**n**r**ejected **d**evices** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**

* * *

It was the time of reckoning.

All were ready, all were waiting. The Pleiades Maids sat in the back of the arena as they chatted amongst themselves. The area guardians were sitting in front of them, patiently waiting for the meetings to begin. The floor guardians sat in front, the most eager of them all.

The elf twins bounced from where they sat, and the succubus and vampire smiled as they suppressed their own jitters. In front of all these willing listeners, the last two supreme ones sat.

Tiamat and Ainz were sitting in a pair of beautifully crafted dark walnut chairs while they counted to make sure all of their loyal subordinates were there. Tiamat's dragons wobbled both around and behind her as she counted out everyone.

The starry ceiling mixed with the occasional stiff breeze made for a lovely night, as those sitting around could attest to. The fake moon shone bright as torches and balls of light lit up the arena. Light dust clouds rose up, and died down as quickly as they were made once everyone got comfortable. The forest surrounding the arena was unusually quiet, but given the company and all the commotion, it was to be expected.

The arena ground on the sixth floor was nearly filled as the loyal servants of Nazarick gossiped amongst themselves. "Hey Yuri, why do you think everyone's here like this? There weren't even this many of us on the same floor when we first came to this world."

"I'm sure the supreme ones have some sort of lesson or surprise for us, Lupus-chan," The stoic head maid replied.

"Oh I hate lessons, a surprise would be waaaaaay better than _that_!" The wolf maid complained with a pout.

"If there is a lesson, you're probably the one in the most need of it," Yuri said with a sigh, though she still offered the werewolf a soft smile.

"Hey, that's mean! How was I supposed to know the ants at Carne village were important?" Lupus bit back, a feisty look in her eye.

"That just shows you that you need to think more often, especially since you were sent there to watch them," The wolf maid's ears drooped as she was reminded of her failure. "Even ants have a place in the world Lupus, if the supreme ones want to watch over an ant hill, then there must be something useful there," The poor werewolf pouted even more, staring at the floor as her ears lay flat against her head.

Not far off, Albedo and Shalltear bickered with each other. "So you gigantic sea cow, why have you brought nearly everyone here? Oh, I know! I bet it's to announce his Lord's bride! Ah, I've so longed for this day!" Shaltear stated in a lusty haze as her imagination took over.

"What did you say you malnourished leech?! You dare assume that you'll gain our Lord's ultimate favor just like that? I ought to flay you alive for just the thought of it!" Albedo roared out, her expression looked as if she was ready to rip off the little vampires head from her shoulders. Shalltear in turn reared back, ready to take a swing and turn this into a proper brawl.

Suddenly, a small cough stopped all the chatter, and everyone refocused on their lord and lady. Once the distinct voice of Tiamat began to speak, Albedo and Shalltear perked up and stopped their daily squabble just as Aura tried to butt in as well.

"Okay! I think that's everyone," Tiamat cheerfully exclaimed as she clapped her hands together.

Ainz seemed mildly amused if his teasing tone was anything to go by. "Are you sure that calling everyone from their stations for this… what did you call it…? A 'pep talk', is a good idea?"

Tiamat waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, it'll be fine. You've proven that nobody can even breach the first area let alone the first floor. Besides, they've been needing something like this for such a long time."

Ainz rubbed his chin, "I suppose... So do tell, what have you gathered us all here for today?"

"I'm glad you asked, because I shall be sharing the story of how we met! So with that little secret revealed, I'll start by telling you all about when I first entered the world of Yggdrasil."

Ainz would have raised an eyebrow if he could, but fortunately his voice showed off his curiosity where his face couldn't. "Oh? What brought on this bout of nostalgia?"

"I've noticed that the Guardians," Tiamat waved her hand in the general direction of the Floor Guardians, "Have been curious about us, _aaaaaand_ I also thought that they deserve a treat. The… incident also brought some things into light," A certain loli vampire flinched, unnoticed by anyone else.

Most of the spectators were awed at the 'gift' they were being given. A certain spectacled demon pulled out a pen and notebook, ready to jot down what would come next as he smiled eagerly. The succubus Albedo couldn't contain her wings as they fluttered about. It took Shalltear a little bit to recover from the news; and Cocytus was just Cocytus. Ainz showed the most interest, however, as he leaned forward and clasped his hands together in a thoughtful manner.

Tia clapped her hands and started the tale. "When I was brought into Yggdrasil, I was weak but so very much curious. There were so many new sights and sounds that I had never seen before, and I wanted to see all of it! From the different worlds to the plants, animals, and people… I wanted to see them all!" she exclaimed with a twinkle of nostalgia in her eyes. Her hands moved and shifted, little fires taking a life of their own as they molded into little images of the realms and other such locations as she went on.

"The rest of the people there did not see it my way. The humans, and some demi-humans, got rewarded for hunting down others that weren't like them. Being so weak and new to the world, there was nothing I could do against them for a while… As such, I decided to harden my scales and make myself unkillable instead!" Her tone started somber but came back to life near the end, until she was rudely interrupted.

"Lot of good that did for you."

"Ainz! I'm trying to tell a story here!" Tiamat poutted. The skeletal overlord chuckled but didn't interrupt any further.

Demiurge decided to raise his hand and looked expectantly at the two supreme ones. Tiamat curiously nodded to the demon. "Yes Demiurge?"

Putting down his notebook, the demon adjusted his glasses before standing and asking his question. "Forgive me for interrupting my Lord and Lady, but if I heard you right, you said that when you enter a new world you become weak and must gather your strength?"

Ainz and Tia both looked at each other before the overlord answered. "Yes, generally speaking."

The ever calculating and sinister smile returned as he sat back down and grabbed his notes. "Ah, I see… that explains both of your behaviors when we first arrived here. Thank you for enlightening me, my Lord." The steel tailed demon then proceeded to furiously write down notes in his book as a few of the other guardians murmured briefly amongst themselves, no doubt sharing examples and confirmation with each other.

"Mare! Do you remember when Lord Ainz and Lady Tiamat first came down after we changed worlds? They trusted us with testing out their strength, isn't that amazing!" Aura excitedly shook Mare's shoulders, the young dark elf nodding and stuttering an equally excited, "Y-Yeah!"

Tiamat looked to Ainz for a moment before giving her attention back to the rest of the room. "Anyway, I eventually grew tougher and decided to journey through the nine realms to find people to beat up—I mean triumph over," the red-haired Dragoness coughed into her fist, " Anyways, I was confident in my ability to outlast most of our other peers, and I eventually did even against Touch Me, who was already a World Champion at the time!" Tiamat's chest puffed out in pride while Ainz's red orbs exasperatedly rolled around in his skull.

Suddenly, Tia's tone grew less enthused, and the Skeletal Overlord glanced at her with a hint of worry. "It was what happened after outlasting Touch-Me that earned me my 'title' if you could call it that," Pentakrisis and the little hatchlings growled and shifted as they felt anxious and angry at people they could never reach. The rest of the crowd were in similar straits as they all remembered this part of the story.

Ainz put his hand on Tiamat's shoulder in a hopefully comforting way. "You don't have to tell it if you don't wish too."

Shaking her head, she responded, a little teary eyed. "No, I do, because it was after that moment that one of the best things in my life happened… I got to meet and be a part of all of you," The dragons nuzzled against her as Mare and Aura ran forward to hug her. She hugged and patted them back eagerly.

A few of the audience sported tears as they waited for her to continue with her tale. Cocytus bristled, ice and snow falling off of him as the next part was told.

"But yes, I was surrounded and beaten down, called a cheater and a worthless dragon… Touch-Me heard about this and offered me the chance to join Ainz Ooal Gown and… well you can all see that I have! Seeing Nazarick for the first time and meeting all of you was breathtaking…" she trailed off a bit with a faraway look in her eyes, "Befriending the other guildmates was just as grand, as we weaved our own stories together."

Tiamat paused for a bit, her eyebrows scrunched up as she seemed to make up her mind on something. "Though that reminds me, I know how much you all must feel knowing that your creators are gone. They were our friends as well," Tiamat waved a hand at Ainz, "And I will always miss them dearly; but I want you all to know that they didn't simply abandon us. There were other worlds they had to return to, on top of the fact that a few thought…" the Dragoness's breath hitched as Ainz gently placed a hand on her shoulder and shook his head. She nodded and wiped at her eyes lightly. One of her hatchlings hopped on her lap after fighting off the others, which caused a bit of a ruckus as they roared at each other.

A few of the brighter guardians looked at each other in a bit of a curious manner before Tia started back up. "The point is that they loved you all deeply and would never have wanted to leave you if they didn't have to. I know it may not be what you all wanted to hear but I thought it needed saying."

"Well said Tia, I couldn't have said it better myself," Ainz stated as he gave her another pat.

The tiny dark elf Mare raised his hand. "Um… if I may ask, why d-did you two stay?"

Tiamat tenderly gazed upon Mare before hugging him. "I knew this question was coming but it still doesn't make it any easier…"

Ainz cleared his throat and decided to take the lead. "While all of us supreme ones have important things in other worlds, we could not simply leave you all alone. It still pains me that they are gone, but I treasure their memories like I treasure all of you."

"Some more than others; but yes just as Ainz said," Ainz sent a glare at Tia who tilted her head in response. "What?"

The undead Lord sighed and pinched the bridge between his eyes. "Nothing, we'll discuss it later."

"Wha? Okay I guess… Anyways, it wasn't long until I had explored every inch of Nazarick. I was amazed at all of you and by this great tomb… yes, even you Pandora," Tiamat smiled as there was a shout in German which was quickly cut off by something being thrown at the changeling's head.

"Though I was sad that I couldn't make a guardian or child like one of you guys."

She then finished her tale and went on to tell more little stories which Ainz had to correct more often than not as she got carried away.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you Razel-Treasure, Frog Launcher, Xavier Nadera, and James for beta-ing this chapter.**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal - Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth - **

**Volume XLI, Chapter VIII - Bargain**

In the depths of a bottomless ravine, the Paladin of Pure Silver sought out the God of Death himself, bringing along with him the pieces of the Dragon's soul.

The incorruptible champion transversed through the death pits of the Underworld, facing countless monstrosities—whose names even now cannot be uttered—in his journey for a being whispered of only in myths.

Several weeks of endless combat passed before the Paladin—battered and bruised—finally stood before the vast cavern that was the domain of the Overlord of Death.

The Silvery Paladin pleaded his case before his longtime friend, and petitioned the Lord of Death if there was any way he could bring to life the flickering shards of the Dragoness's soul. To the Champion's dismay, the Overlord of Death shook his head, saying that such a feat was far beyond even his vast powers.

For even a being in command of Life and Death themselves could not bring to life someone whose soul had been shattered into so many pieces.

Despite being faced with such an insurmountable obstacle, the Paladin refused to give in to despair. For what more suitable task was there for him than one that even the gods declared impossible?

Bearing this unquenchable determination in his heart, the Paladin went to the only other group of people he knew that might be able to bring the Dragoness back from the brink.

Bading farewell to the forsaken depths of the Death God, the Paladin set foot into the highest heavens—a privilege granted to him by virtue of his exemplary justice—and petitioned the unfathomable angels themselves to restore his broken friend.

To his dismay, the holy celestials turned their noses up at the sight of a _beast _descretating their holy domain. No matter how much the Paladin appealed to their fabled mercy and compassion, the angels turned a deaf ear to him, eventually growing tired of his unceasing pleading as they coldly forced him to leave.

Even still, the Paladin persisted. He traveled far and long, beyond the concepts of good and evil, beyond life and death, and reached a flat plain of pure emptiness where only the most enduring souls could reach.

It was there, in a realm of pure white, that he met a shining being whose appearance was all but incomprehensible to the Paladin's eyes.

Wary of the bizarre stranger, the Silver Paladin asked the out-of-place being who it was. The being did nothing but point to the Paladin's side.

Confused, the Paladin grew even more on guard, drawing his blessed sword as once again asked the being for its name. The being's mouth, or at least where most people would have a mouth, twisted in geometrie foreign to this realm, and out came a name that filled the Paladin's soul with tired resignation.

"_ガチャポン"_

A word—name—that every breathing being that called the Great Tree their home knew, feared, and worshipped.

Countless had laid their entire fortunes at the feet of the being beyond the divine, hoping for even a fraction of the being's goodwill.

Countless others had lost everything to the cruel and uncaring hand of the being.

The Paladin was well acquainted with the tales surrounding ガチャポン.

They were not tales that ended with a happily-ever-after. Even so, there was nowhere else for him to go.

If we were to save his friend, then this was his only chance.

With a deep sigh that carried the dread of a champion of an entire world, the Paladin took from his side a handful of a mysterious substance that the gods called "_えん" _and laid it at the foot of the everwatching being.

Once the Paladin had put forth his offering, the being turned its blank yet evershifting face towards him. It raised its arm and beckoned for the Champion to bring the shards of his friend's soul closer.

He cautiously brought the flickering embers of the Dragon's soul closer. The being said not a word as it laid a finger on the largest ember in the Champion's cradle. A brilliant flash blinded the Paladin for a split second, and when he opened them, he found himself back in the dark chasms of his friend the Death God.

The Overlord of Death—enraged at how his friend sought the council of ガチャポン— stepped forward to castigate the Paladin until he saw a truly amazing sight.

The embers that the being had blessed were slowly coalescing into the form of a young maiden. As the shards of the Dragon's soul were gradually reunited, the light surrounding her form dimmed.

Before the Paladin's and Overlord's eyes, a horned woman bearing crimson hair dyed in the bloody dawn appeared, eyes closed as her body slowly descending to the ground as the mysterious force that had been lifting her vanished.

The Overlord—who happened to be right below her—caught her as she suddenly fell, her shut eyes slowly opening to reveal orbs of fluid amethyst.

The Dragon had arisen once again.

* * *

**Chapter 26: A Garden of Silvery Blue**

* * *

As the Priestess walked away with the warrior dog, one of the nobles of the entourage sneered behind them as he twisted one of the rings on his middle finger, before returning back to the Throne Room where the King and all the other nobles were still having their discussion.

Stopping in front of the grand double doors, the civil officer was about to announce his and his entourage's presence, but he waved it off. The civil officer nodded, quietly slinging the door open with ease so that the nobleman could come in and sneak behind the crowd, unnoticed.

Apparently, as soon as the Priestess had left, the whole room had been embroiled in a very heated discussion.

The King sat on his Throne, unaccompanied by the warrior dog. The colossal chair of deep blue and marbled ice white with a carned banner hanging above the entrance way to the rich mahogany doors was always magnificent to look at. But most of them dreamily took note of the empty side next to the King, imagining themselves in the warrior dog's position.

But not everyone thought that way.

"As I said, Your Majesty. I would like to make her a member of the nobility," Blumrush suggested.

An angry murmur rose up from the usually quiet nobles, "There's no way we can do that!" one of the more audacious one shouted out.

Even if it was one of the Six Great Nobles of the Kingdom who had suggested that, most of the lesser nobles agreed that it was not a good idea.

Especially with the rule put in place by the Adventurer's Guild. "No Adventurer shall be involved in politics," a rule made out of common sense. A rule that the nobles knew would limit their involvement with strong influential heroes.

Heroes like the Priestess.

It was not the first time someone had suggested something like this either.

Countless other nobles had once petitioned for their favorite Adventurer to be inducted into the Royal Court, only for them to be completely shut down by the Six Great Nobles.

And now...now one of them was eating his own words.

This caused some of those nobles to rage.

"Why would you even do that, Marquis Blumrush?! When I was suggesting that Igvarge-dono become a noble because of his achievements, _you _were the one who refused!"

As the other noble huffed his breath from the sheer unfairness of the situation, he had completely lost his integrity as a noble in the eyes of his peers. To think that he would use commoner-like words and fail to control his emotions in front of the King.

Some of them grimaced at his egregious lack of decorum.

Marquis Blumrush smiled, gracefully poised with his back straight and eyes looking straight at the other noble. "You have to understand, _Baron_," enunciating the noisy noble's lower ranking. The corner of his mouth lifted, almost in a sneer. "Igvarge-dono did not have much to offer to the table. The achievements he had accumulated in his entire career had been surpassed by the Priestess in merely a week's time."

The Baron flinched at the Marquis's irrefutable words.

It was clear at this point whose word held more weight in the Royal Court. A mere no-named Baron would be outclassed in every aspect by a Marquis from the Six Great Nobles.

"The Silver Priestess was the one who had eradicated the Curse of the Sea, and the product she had created as a result improved the state country's market. Aside from that, she had also protected the Kingdom from the _Pandemonium_, where even those of Mythril rank were overwhelmed. Furthermore, she had healed all of the injured Adventurers afterwards.

"Just the fact that His Majesty had invited her into the castle just to thank her is something extraordinary," Blumrush quipped as the stupid nobles hung on to his every word.

Blumrush turned slightly towards the King, "This is why, Your Majesty, I believe my proposal to be for the good of the entire Kingdom."

The King looked at the noble in front of him with wary eyes; however, he waved his hand, urging for him to continue.

Marquis Blumrush's grin widened even further.

The reason as to why he was suggesting this was obvious. He had seen her power in his own gem mine just a couple of days ago.

A monster of immense might and power.

When the woman knew that it was him who facilitated her rise from a mere commoner to an exalted noble, she would definitely be grateful. He would provide her with everything she needed, and she would gradually depend on him more and more. Once she was fully wrapped around his finger, that was when he was going to strike.

Using his influence as her benefactor, he would force her to follow his commands.

He was one of the Six Great Nobles. His word was law in the Kingdom. If the Priestess had a rank that was lower than his, then there was nothing she could do but to obey him.

Blumrush's smile widened at the thought.

With the dragon at his beck and call, he could easily subdue the Empire and there would no longer be a need for him to act like a dirty mole _ever again_.

And perhaps he could finally topple the stupid King from his throne, making it his own.

"I wish to make her a noble, and I hope that Your Majesty will give her a rank befitting of one as a gift from the Kingdom for all the good deeds she has done. Your Majesty we need to—"

The King sighed, clutching his head with the palm of his hand as he realized what he had done by inviting the Silver Priestess to the castle.

His head throbbed.

The pain felt like someone had taken a hammer to his skull. He leaned his head into his hand more as he squeezed his eyes shut and willed the pain to go away.

The rest of the world blurred into a haze of colors and sound, and the only thing he could concentrate on was the pain rooted deep inside his head.

He could barely hear Marquis Blumrush and the rest of the nobles who seemed to agree with his argument as they were chattering before him. All Ramposa felt and all he knew was the pain of that moment.

Ramposa waved his hand. The headache was starting to become much more overbearing, "I will think about it. For now, you are all dismissed."

One by one, the nobles left the Throne room. A heated discussion emerged as the nobles discussed the action of elevating a commoner to nobility. Marquis Blumrush followed Marquis Raeven out of the room as he smirked.

"Blumrush," a voice called out to him from the shadow of the doorway.

The older man feigned surprise as he quickly turned around, "My Prince! I did not see you there."

The prince smirked, a cruel grin that Blumrush was all too familiar with, "It seems that we have a lot to talk about."

Blumrush eyed the King who was still rubbing his head, "It seems so, Prince Barbro."

And so the two of them walked side by side out of the Throne Room, leaving the King to sit alone on the throne.

Thanks to his new chess piece in this board game along with the stupid eldest prince, Blumrush was confident that his plans would proceed at a breakneck pace. He just had to wait a little longer and he would no longer have to be a dog for the Baharuth Empire.

Just a little bit more and he could be the ruler of both nations. His eyes narrowed in delight as he thought about how the King himself was unwittingly dancing in the palm of his hand.

Afterall, just like the eldest prince, it had always been easy to persuade the stupid King.

ლ（╹ε╹ლ）

"Uhhhhh, nice to meet you too?" Tiamat awkwardly waved at them as she glanced down at Gagaran who was still bleeding out on the ground. "Is she going to be okay?" Tiamat pointed worriedly at the injured warrior.

"Oh, Gagaran?" Lakyus sighed, "She'll be fine, I promise."

"Now, if only that Mass of Muscle would stop trying to glomp every living thing she saw..." the masked girl muttered as she sat back down in her chair.

"Evil-eye," Lakyus admonished, turning her head to face Tiamat with a half-smile on her face, "I'm really sorry about those two. It's been years and they're _still _always at each others' throats…" the leader of the illustrious group shook her head. "Anyways, I'm sure that you didn't come all the way here just to watch us squabble. Please, come in. And you too, Climb-kun," Lakyus moved to the side and gestured towards the room.

"Ah, thanks, but are you _sure_ she'll be alright?" Tiamat looked back at Gagaran who was groaning as she pushed herself back into a standing position, leaving a stark red stain on the white carpet that was starting to congeal.

That carpet was immediately removed from sight by one of the maids who entered just after Tiamat and Climb. Shortly afterwards, more maids came into the room with trays stacked with tea and sweets.

Renner rushed past Tiamat and pulled Climb into a tight hug, causing the young guard to splutter with a bright red face.

"Climb! Are you okay?!" the Princess herself had kneeled down and was panickedly patting Climb from top to bottom as she checked for injuries.

"R-Renner-sama, I'm wearing armor. I'm alright…" Climb tried to comfort the distressed princess.

Tiamat blanched as she watched the maids drag the bloodied carpet away, '_I thought that Gagaran was about to attack Climb,' _the Dragoness stole a quick glance at the Assassin who was innocently dangling from the ceiling, _'I should've given the assassin a more specific order...'_

"Get up, Muscle Head. You've had injuries worse than this," the masked girl snarked.

"_Awww_, I know you actually care, Shorty," Gagaran let out a strained smile as she stumbled over to Tiamat.

"Name's Gagaran, but everyone calls me the Mysterious Lovely Warrior," the muscular woman grabbed her hand and vigorously shook it. The Eight-Edge Assassin on the ceiling stiffened.

Tiamat simply gave him a look and the spider immediately stopped, dropping his blades as his body slightly relaxed.

She lowered her eyes to Gagaran's wound. The laceration had stained the surrounding area a sticky red—a sight that was definitely not for sore eyes.

Tiamat winced, "I'm really sorry about that. Here, let me heal this," without waiting for Gagaran's response, she placed her hand over the injury.

"『Full Cure』."

Before their widened eyes, a golden glow surrounded Gagaran's wound as the torn flesh rapidly knit itself together.

In just a few seconds, Gagaran's stomach bore no signs that she had suffered a severe injury. The only indicator that she had ever been attacked was the tear in her armor.

"Damn! That was one hell of a healing spell pretty lady!" Gagaran looked down at her stomach in awe, patting the newly created skin and pinching it to see if it hurt.

Tiamat rubbed her head sheepishly, "It's the least I can do, afterall—" _the spider was my responsibility_…

"That's an interesting spell," the masked person—Evileye—commented. "Your first spell was interesting as well."

Tiamat's forehead broke out in cold sweat. She knew where this conversation was going.

"What is that spell anyways?"

'_I knew it!'_

Her knees were weak, arms heavy. Despite all that, she gave the rest of the group a sweet smile and a wink, "It's a secret~"

The whole table fell into an awkward silence.

Only to be erased by the booming laughter from the Mysterious Lovely Warrior.

"I like that answer, pretty lady!" Gagaran put her massive stocky arms around her shoulders. Even though Tiamat was taller than Albedo, who was by no means short, she couldn't help but feel tiny next to the giant beside her.

"Maa," Lakyus interjected. "I understand, afterall, we all have secrets regarding our skills," But then she looked away and began mumbling, _"Even I have my own secrets…"_

If Tiamat didn't have her enhanced hearing, she wouldn't have heard anything. As it was, she found it very reasonable that the leader of this Adamantite party would have her own secrets to protect.

Tiamat's eyes took in the members of Blue Rose. Despite hearing so much about them, she had never thought they would be such a carefree group.

Her gaze landed on them one by one. First, it landed on the person right in front of her, the leader of the group, Lakyus. She was wearing a red dress fit for nobility while the rest of the team was wearing their adventuring outfits. Her hair was done in a side braid, and her confident eyes made Tiamat want to look away. They were simply too overbearing.

Next, her eyes landed on the sassy masked...person. She looked small, and her height was similar to, or even shorter than Princess Renner's. Her garb consisted of a long tattered cloak and an uncanny mask that hid her appearance.

Then Tiamat looked over to her right to see the twins standing side by side. The kunais the twins were previously brandishing had mysteriously disappeared.

'_Wow, so these are __**real **__Adamantite Adventurers… Does that mean I should hide even more of my skills? I guess it would make sense seeing as people are already gossiping a lot about me.'_

Tiamat felt a strong urge to cast『Appraisal』on the group before her, but she refrained. She had a feeling that they wouldn't take kindly to her exposing their abilities.

'_It would be kinda rude if I did that to people I just met…'_

However, she felt a weird vibe from Evileye. Somehow, when she sniffed the air, Tiamat had caught a faint sweet smell that strangely reminded her of Shalltear.

Renner clapped her hands together, "Well, I think you guys are well acquainted at this point. It makes me really happy!"

The Princess walked in front of Tiamat and curtsied right after helping Climb back to his feet. "My name is Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself, Third Princess of Re-Estize Kingdom. Nice to meet you, Silver Priestess!"

'_Waa...she looks like one of those Princesses from children's tales. If she's a monster like that Prince from earlier said, then she must be the most adorable monster in the world…"_

Tiamat shook her head, erasing all thoughts of cuteness from her mind as she focused her mind on the meeting before her.

Copying the Princess's picture-perfect curtsy, Tiamat began her greetings. "My name is Hannah Annafelowz, the Silver Priestess. Thank you for inviting me to the Rose Garden, Princess Renner Theiere Chardelon Ryle Vaiself and Blue Rose. I'm happy to finally be here."

"Let's all take a seat, shall we?" the Princess turned her head around at the knight behind Tiamat. "You too Climb."

The first ones to move towards the round table were the Princess and Lakyus. The twins stayed behind Lakyus like her shadow, while Evileye who had not moved an inch just slumped down on her chair. Climb walked past the small masked girl and waited for the Silver Priestess to choose her seat.

"Climb, come sit next to me," the Princess implored with sparkling eyes. Climb wavered for a moment before Renner pressed on, "Come on Climb. Don't you want to sit and talk with everyone?"

"Renner-sama, it would be too inappro—"

"Oh, shut up," the small masked figure moaned, "I swear, you two do this stupid back and forth everytime we come over."

"Evil-Eye!" Lakyus scowled, "You're going to leave a bad impression on our guest."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Tiamat sincerely believed that if the petite girl wasn't wearing her mask, then everyone would be able to see her rolling her eyes.

"Don't mind her, Climb-kun. Take a seat right here," the blonde leader of the Adamantite group pulled out a chair next to Renner.

"Y-Yes, Lakyus-san," Climb abashedly took the proffered seat.

Tiamat took the hint and took another seat between Gagaran and Lakyus, right across from the Princess herself. But even after she did that, Tiamat could see that Climb had still hesitated when he sat down in the chair next to the Princess. The Golden Princess, however, looked noticeably happier.

As she was getting herself comfortable, the maids started putting the teacups and sweets on the table.

"Thank you," Tiamat said to the black haired maid, and the maid flinched—clearly not expecting a response—and nodded before leaving the room, shutting the door as quietly as possible.

"It's really sad, isn't it?" Renner took a sip as her eyes peeked over the edge of her teacup.

"Huh?" an undignified response left Tiamat's lips. The question had caught her off guard.

"The way the maids respond to just a simple word of gratitude, it's a sad thing isn't it?" Renner gently put the teacup down.

"I guess? The King doesn't seem like the type to mistreat them," Tiamat scratched the back of her head.

"Mmmm, Papa always does his best for his people, but Papa is too busy with other stuff to actually take care of each employee in the Castle," Renner cutely tilted her head, "I am curious, Hannah-san, how do you know for sure that Papa doesn't mistreat his employees?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, a Monarch had a lot of responsibilities. They have to make choices they don't want to make for the good of the people; however, that doesn't mean he's a good person, right?"

"That's true, but if he's always working for the good of the people, that means that he cares about them right? Even if he has to make hard decisions, isn't it all for their sakes?" Tiamat looked straight into the Princess's wide open eyes. "Any person that's willing to go that far for people they might never see is a good person in my book."

"I see," Renner's expression turned serious for a split second before returning back to that of an innocent child's, "I'm sure Papa would be really happy to hear that!"

Lakyus smiled, "That's interesting," and sipped on her tea slowly.

The leader of Blue Rose knew what the Princess was trying to do and smiled from behind the tea cup. Lakyus knew that the Princess was just trying to get to know the Priestess better.

Tiamat frowned, "Did I say something wrong?"

"No. In fact, it's the opposite," Lakyus responded, and Tiamat got even more confused.

"Anyways, Hannah-san, that dress looks very pretty on you!" Renner clapped with a smile.

"Thank you, Princess."

"That dress used to belong to my mother, and it fits you perfectly."

"Ah, it's a really beautiful dress. Your mother must be a lovely woman," Tiamat looked down at the dress she was wearing, trying to imagine an older Renner wearing it.

"Oh," the Princess's expression turned into that of ineffable sorrow, "She would have been happy to hear you say that."

"Would have been? Oh…" Tiamat looked down at the tea cup in front of her.

The Princess was the image of youth, no older than fourteen years old at most. For her to see a stranger wearing her mother's dress, she must've been greatly distressed.

Feeling guilty, Tiamat steeled herself and stood up from the desk, surprising even Gagaran who stopped grabbing sweets off the plates to look up at her. Tiamat turned towards the door and exited the room.

"H-Hannah-san?" Renner looked at her confusedly. "Where are you going?"

"Where's the bathroom?" Tiamat asked, completely ignoring the Princess's question.

Renner pointed to the bathroom inside the room marked with a beautiful white door. Tiamat nodded and headed immediately towards the bathroom, confusing everyone who was present.

"What's she doing?" Evileye asked.

"Probably a stomachache?" Gagaran suggested. Tina and Tia, the two ninja twins, looked at each other and shrugged.

A few moments later, the Silver Priestess exited the bathroom, wearing a completely different outfit. Instead of the dark blue dress she was initially wearing, she had donned her usual adventuring outfit.

Renner was shocked.

"Hannah-san, I—" but she was cut short by Tiamat's steadfast voice.

"I apologize, Princess Renner," Tiamat bowed deeply, clutching the tidily folded dress with the palm of her hands, "If I had known that this dress belonged to your mother, I wouldn't have worn it. It must have been painful to see a stranger wearing your beloved mother's possessions; no matter how small or insignificant the item might be, it still holds value to you. So once again, I apologize."

Renner's point was to actually see how the newly rising adventurer would react in an uncomfortable situation, but she didn't expect that the Priestess would have stripped herself of the dress that had obviously been gifted by the King.

"Don't worry, Hannah-san. I'm sure she would be happy seeing someone as beautiful as you wearing it," Renner let out a smile that seemed a bit brighter than before. "Forget that I mentioned anything please."

"Still, it doesn't make it right…" Tiamat handed the dress back to Renner, and Renner accepted it with a confused look on her face, "I hope you can wear this dress when you grow older, Princess. In the future, please tell the King to cherish his wife's belongings more."

Renner laughed. A clear, bright laugh that sounded of crystal plains. As she laughed, a stray tear escaped her eye.

Princess Renner was a master of masking her expression. She had always held back her emotions to hide her true nature so that she could get what she wanted. She was manipulative, cunning, and she wouldn't hesitate to betray her family, her bloodline, and her people to reach her goal.

But this was the first time that some stranger had told _her_, the Princess of the Kingdom, to talk back to the King.

The very thought was so hilarious that Renner couldn't help but laugh at the notion.

The King had never cared about her mother in the first place, so for the Priestess to actually tell the Princess to ask her father, the King, to cherish her mother's belongings was nonsense.

Not that Renner cared anyways; her mother had died when she was still a toddler. And despite her perfect memory, she could not recall a single time where her father had grieved for his dead wife.

"T-Tell Papa to c-cherish M-Mama's belongings m-more…!" Renner tried to hold down her laugher. Lakyus and Climb looked on with soft smiles; the Princess laughed often, but she rarely laughed so brightly.

"D-Did I say something wrong again?" Tiamat asked no one in particular.

Lakyus just sipped her tea with a smile.

"Enough with all this serious talk!" Gagaran smacked the table, causing some of the tea to splash onto the white cloth. "Oi, Priestess! Let me fight your Dragon!"

Evileye clicked her tongue in annoyance, "You'll get killed in an instant. Stop being such an idiot."

The twins nodded their heads.

"You want to fight Pentakrisis?" Tiamat looked at Gagaran as if she had grown a second head.

"No. No, she doesn't," the masked girl cut Gagaran off, "What she wants is to have a nice _long _talk about why she shouldn't ambush strangers."

"C'mon, Shorty! How many more chances like this are we gonna get?" Gagaran wrapped her arm around the short masked girl.

"Preferably none. Unlike you, I have a functioning sense of self preservation."

"I have no problem with it," Tiamat butted in, returning to her seat, "If you guys want, I could go ask..."

"_No_," Evileye adamantly replied, "That'll just be encouraging her stupidity, and we already have to deal with enough of _that_."

Gagaran gave the masked girl the stink eye, and leaned in to Tiamat and whispered, "Can I really spar with your Dragon?"

Tiamat looked at her confusedly, "You really, _really_ want to fight with Pentakrisis?"

Seeing how she keeled over to a single misdirected attack from a mere level eighty Eight-Edge Assassin, Gagaran probably wasn't focused on defense. Judging from her appearance, Tiamat determined that she must be the nuker for Blue Rose.

'_There's no way she's going to survive the first breath attack,' _Tiamat mused, sheepishly smiling at Gagaran. _'Probably a maximum of level fifty? Below level fifty is more accurate. Yeah, there's no way…'_

Tiamat imagined Gagaran running headfirst towards Pentakrisis as he stared with a deadpan expression. Then before Gagaran could come any closer, Taki would just burp, and Gagaran would be burned to crisps, just like a burnt cookie.

"Of course I want to! Anyone would! Right?"

Everyone else in the room looked at Gagaran with a deadpan expression. Even Climb and the Twins, who had stayed quiet throughout the whole conversation, was glancing at her with an expression of pity.

Only Tiamat and the Princess were still cheerfully smiling.

"Good luck, Gagaran!" Renner eagerly clapped her hands together, "I never thought I would get to see one of you battle a real, live _dragon_ today!"

"I said don't encourage the muscle idiot!" Evileye yelled out, "Oi, Lakyus! Say something!"

Lakyus only smiled at Gagaran, "That'll be a sight to behold."

"_Oi!_"

"Anyways," Lakyus disregarded the shortest member of the group, "I'm sure you've received the invitation that we sent you from before, right?"

Tiamat nodded.

"The reason why we invited you here is because we have to ask you something," Lakyus continued.

Tiamat looked at Lakyus, urging the leader of Blue Rose to continue.

Evileye sighed, "Stop stalling and just get on with it."

"Silver Priestess, would you—"

"Join Blue Rose!" Gagaran stated.

The Dragoness just stared at the Mysterious Lovely Warrior with wide eyes.

"You...you want me to join Blue Rose?"

"Well not just me. But everyone here wants you to join. Isn't that right?" Gagaran turned towards the table, and everyone nodded, even the twins who had never said a word from the beginning.

Tiamat's eyes widened in surprise, and started to look at them warily. Because of the incident with Pluton, she was very much aware that people would target her because of her Dragon. Was that why they invited her to the Rose Garden? For Pentakrisis?

Anger started bubbling up within her, and she was about to lash out in fury before a cold lump lodged itself in her heart as she remembered the last incident where she let her emotions takes the best of her.

She took a child's parents away.

Something that she would regret for the rest of her life.

'_Remember what Ainz said. You don't know that. Don't assume. Observe.'_

She needed to confirmed their intentions. Were they really after Pentakrisis? Did they have other ulterior motives?

"I—"

Evileye spoke up, interrupting her, "If you're worried about your dragon, don't be. We aren't inviting you because we need access to more firepower—gods know we have enough of that—but because we're trying to protect you."

Tiamat brought the teacup before her up to her lips before taking another sip, "Why? What are you trying to protect me from?"

The room's temperature dropped.

The Priestess's distrust was as clear as day.

The masked girl facepalmed, "No, no, not that. Obviously, you don't need any help protecting yourself. What I'm trying to say is that you won't be targeted by malicious rumors as much if you're part of our group."

Lakyus piped up, "We don't mean to be arrogant, but our team _does _have a pretty good reputation. If you do choose to accept our invitation, I can speak with certainty that people will think twice before slandering you."

"Ah," Tiamat relaxed a bit. She got the feeling that they were indeed trying to look out for her, but why? Why would they bother trying to protect a complete stranger?

The twins narrowed their eyes.

"You're wondering—" one began.

"—Why we're bothering to do this," the other finished.

"And the reason is actually pretty simple," Lakyus added on. "You could do a lot for the sake of humanity, you know? Judging from your actions at E-Rantel, I don't see you as someone who cares very much about wealth. So, what do you say?"

The masked girl piped up, "If you don't believe us, just ask the Princess here; we've helped to eliminate illegal drug and sex trafficking, along with enforcing the anti-slavery law that Goldy here helped pass."

"If you join, I can spar with the Dragon all day!" Gagaran excitedly exclaimed.

"Wait, rumor_s_?" Tiamat enunciated the -s, recalling the scene back at the inn from a couple nights ago, "What other rumors were there besides me seducing Ainzach?"

The Blue Rose members looked at one another awkwardly.

Evileye sighed and folded her arms across her chest, "You seriously don't know?"

Tiamat nodded.

"Oh boy, where should we start—" Evileye was cut short by Lakyus.

"Some people are talking about how you sleep with the dragon and ask it to do your quests for you. There's more, but I doubt you'll find much pleasure in hearing it," Lakyus grimaced.

"Seriously, it's a load of bullshit. People do anything they can to bring other people down," Gagaran fumed.

"They also said—"

"—You eloped with the Black Warrior Momon," Tina finished her sister's sentence.

Climb jerked his head toward the Priestess, eyes wide in shock. The Dark Warrior Momon was viewed as a martial paragon throughout the city and to think that he was already married...

"_Haa?!_" Tiamat unwittingly screamed out.

"Oh yeah, that rumor died down quickly. But I heard that you and that Momon warrior came to E-Rantel to elope or something," Gagaran put her hand on her chin in contemplation.

"_What the hell is that rumor?!_"

"I dunno, you tell me, pretty girl," the titanic woman shrugged, "I think it's a bunch of shit."

"I heard that you're a Princess from a lost country—" Evileye paused for a moment before continuing, "And the reason why you ran away from your home is because of the forbidden love you have with that Dark Warrior," the masked girl finished with a quiet voice.

Renner clapped her hands gently, "Now, now. We're not here to discuss the rumors surrounding the Silver Priestess, but rather, her future involvement with Blue Rose."

"That's right," Lakyus nodded her head in agreement. "As you can see, the rumors are not good. They never have been, especially for female adventurers. I hope that with you joining Blue Rose, we could at least tone the rumors down, and be a beacon of hope _together_," she gave Tiamat a warm smile.

"So what do you say, pretty lady? You in?"

Tiamat looked down at the teacup, her murky reflection staring back at her from the light brown water, as she thought about what they had proposed.

The members of Blue Rose, including Princess Renner and Climb, patiently waited for her reply.

It was very rare for Blue Rose to recruit newcomers since it was such a closely knitted group. The last person they recruited was Evileye, and that was several years ago.

Even Climb felt like he was witnessing a historical moment. Something that would one day be engraved in the lore of heroes.

Something legendary.

The room was filled with a palpable tension. Lakyus, along with the rest of her comrades, had high hopes that the Priestess would join.

For Renner, the Priestess joining Blue Rose would increase her reputation in the eyes of the people significantly.

They could all see that the Priestess's eyes were filled with determination, and their eyes were glued to her mouth as they anxiously waited for her response.

"I—"

ლ（╹ε╹ლ）

Tiamat strolled down the streets of Re-Estize Kingdom with her staff in hand and the Assassin in tow.

The whole affair with the King had taken most of the day.

The maids dressing her early in the morning for hours on end.

The meeting with the King at noon.

And the meeting with the Princess and the Adamantite team Blue Rose that lasted until dusk.

The sun sank lower into the sky—the light of day giving way to a velvety orange sky—and dusky colors heralded the starry night. The shadows grew longer as the air turned colder. This was the time where merchants and commoners alike returned to their homes and families to rest.

"My Lady, forgive this one's impertinence, but may I ask you a question?" the Assassin beside her suddenly spoke up.

At this point, she was seriously considering giving the Eight-Edge Assassin a name. Even if it was a bit psychotic at times, the spider had accompanied her through thick and thin, distracting Tiamat from the horrible anxiety of stepping foot in the large unfamiliar castle.

But if she gave one of them a name, does that mean she had to give the rest of the Assassins names? It would feel like preferential treatment if she only gave a name to one of them, right?

"Of course," Tiamat nodded with a smile as she thought of what kind of name would be best for the Assassin next to her.

'_Psychopathic arachnoid who likes to slash people. Maybe Slasher? Nah, that sounds like one of those slasher posts from the 21st century. What about Slashy…?'_

Tiamat stopped to look at the spider behind her, comparing name after name in accordance to his personality. _'Hmm, that's too on the nose, maybe Silencer?'_

Thankfully, the streets were almost empty at the late hour—the hustle and bustle of the capital having long died down. Tiamat was grateful for this, since it meant that no one would actually see her staring at the brick road she was currently standing on.

'_Silencer is too edgy. I think Shroud is better. Yup, that settles it!'_

"Why did you refuse their offer, My Lady?" the Assassin respectfully asked.

"You mean the Nobles who invited me to dine with them tonight?"

After she had finished talking with Blue Rose and Princess Renner, Climb-kun had escorted her outside of the Rose Garden. There, two nobles had invited her to join them for dinner: an invitation she had immediately refused.

Afterall, she needed to visit Sebas and Solution. It felt like forever ever since she had last seen them.

"I apologize My Lady, but I can understand why you rejected the invitation of the flesh bags outside the garden. This lowly one however, cannot understand why you rejected the offer of the insects from earlier. Would they not be a source of more information?"

'_Wow, I think that's the most I've ever heard him say.'_

"Ah, you mean Blue Rose?"

The spider nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"Hmm, well…" Tiamat scrunched her eyebrows as she pondered the Assassin's question, "If I were to accept their offer, then I won't have as much time to spend with you guys anymore, right?"

The assassin just stared at the Supreme Being in front of him as he let the happiness sink to his bones. He wanted to close all eight of his eyes to savor the moment, but joy was no excuse for not being vigilant.

For the first time since he had received this assignment from Ainz-sama, his body relaxed. In that moment, there were no expectations placed upon him, no deadlines or schedules to meet.

Unwittingly, he had trembled happily, "Spend time with us, My Lady?"

Tiamat smiled and patted his head lovingly, "Yes, I like spending time with you guys, even if it's just a little. I know I've been busy lately with the Adventuring and the paperwork, but there are so many things I want to do with all of you, instead of just cooking in the kitchen. If I join Blue Rose, I won't have time to do any of that."

The Assassin found himself anticipating what she meant, and he couldn't help but blurt out, "What are you planning to do, Lady Tiamat?"

Tiamat continued walking down the road and the spider hurriedly followed. "Let's see…" she put her fingers under her chin, "I really want to do a big picnic with everyone at the Sixth Floor. But we have to find a time where both me and Ainz aren't busy, plus the Floor Guardians, the Pleiades, and the maids. I also want Nigredo, Pestonya, Neuronist, and even Eclair to join in. I wonder if that's possible…"

"I see."

"Plus, if I joined Blue Rose, there's a possibility that I have to be around them twenty-four seven. That would be dangerous for Nazarick since Ainz wants to keep the guild a secret for now, so I just offered them my services if they ever need me."

"I understand, My Lady. Thank you for explaining it to this one."

"You're welcome, Shroud."

"Shroud?" he asked, confused as to who the Supreme Being was referring to.

"Ah! That's your name. I just thought of it a few moments ago. What do you think?" Tiamat looked at the spider expectantly. If he didn't like the name she had given him, then she could simply think of a better name.

"A-A name? My Lady, I am not worthy!" Shroud's voice stuttered as stopped in his steps and fell to his knees. He slammed his head into the ground in worship, causing Tiamat to wring her hands in panic as she tried to get Shroud to get back up.

One passerby looked at Tiamat weirdly. Her face turned red, and she coughed in her fist.

"If you don't like it, I can ask Ainz to give you a better one," she turned back to Shroud.

"No! I like the name you gave me, My Lady, thank you very much!"

Tiamat didn't know this, but Eight-Edge Assassins were born Assassins. They were never noticed, always in the background, and constantly in the shadows. That was why the Eight-Edge Assassins didn't have names. They were just tools to further the eternal glory of Nazarick.

But the Goddess had given him a name, an identity, something that he could call his own.

He whispered his own name, the single syllable rolling off his tongue in secret as he walked behind the Dragoness. The sheer happiness caused his vision to become blurry.

Shroud shook his head. There was no time to be feeling sentimental, yet he couldn't get it out of his head. It was so beautiful, like a piece of art. To him, his name was perfect and he had to consciously stop himself from mouthing his name, afraid that he was embarrassing himself before a Supreme Being.

He never knew that something so simple could make him feel as jittery as a bumblebee. Surely there was nothing better than his name. It was a gift from the Supreme Being herself, who must have chosen that name after much care and consideration.

"I'm happy that you like your name, Shroud," Tiamat petted him once more, "Now, shall we run for a bit to Sebas and Solution's house?"

Shroud excitedly nodded, vanishing in a burst of super-sonic speed, leaving the Supreme Being he was supposed to be guarding behind.

"H-Hold on, that's cheating! I didn't say it was a race!"

ლ（╹ε╹ლ）

Sebas was waiting outside of the mansion he had just bought with the money given to him by Albedo.

Since both Supreme Beings were working as adventurers, Sebas was given a huge sum of money to buy a mansion in the Capital and to purchase some necessities for Nazarick as well.

When Sebas and Solution had first arrived in the Capital, they needed to find a suitable place to settle in. Since they were pretending to be the daughter of a prominent merchant and her butler, they needed to find a residence that would properly convey the status of their disguise.

After a bit of talking around with the locals, Sebas had found a simple wooden mansion; spacious, gaunt, and somewhat dilapidated. He figured with the amount of gold coins he was given, he could find something better.

The place where he and Solution were staying had ivy and ferns growing through the crevices of the old winding stone path that led directly to the colossal structure. The mansion loomed proudly behind creaky iron gates—Sebas made a mental note to himself to fix that. Flanked by rows of skeletal trees that were swaying gently in the wind, a delicate marble fountain stood: the soft gurgling of the water reasonating in the empty courtyard.

The mansion was three stories tall and located in a good spot that was only a few kilometers away from the crowded center of the Capital. He was glad that he chose this place instead of the first mansion that he saw at the beginning. Lady Tiamat probably wouldn't have enjoyed the constant chaos of the Capital Center.

Other than the expenses for the mansion and the other necessities that come along with it—such as a carriage with horses, their food, and a homunculi maid from Nazarick to drive the carriage. That meant building a stable and storing all the materials needed to properly take care of the horses.

The money he had received was originally the surplus from Nazarick's budget. He used this leftover money for Nazarick's weekly shopping on the occasions where Lupusregina Beta could not find an item that the denizens wanted at Carne Village. But even after all these expenses, he still found himself with a surplus, enough to be used for next week's expenditures.

Sebas pulled out his pocket watch, a gift from his creator, Touch Me, for him to keep track of time. He was standing in front of the porch under a large arched latticed roof that was supported by several white columns.

At the moment, he was currently waiting for the Supreme Being to arrive at the mansion. He had received a『Message』from Lady Tiamat that she would be visiting the mansion soon, with the Eight Edge Assassin leading.

Sebas, being the discreet and hardworking butler of Nazarick, had told the Eight Edge Assassin accompanying her the location of the mansion.

He looked at his watch; it was about five in the afternoon. Sebas shut his watch and returned it to his pockets. His stoic gaze was once again directed to the gates as he waited for the arrival of the Supreme Being.

As he expected, the first one to arrive was the Eight-Edge Assassin. Its form was a bit hazy despite Sebas's detection skills.

As soon as the spider jumped across the gate into the mansion's territory, Sebas could finally see the outline of someone slowly jogging towards the black gates. She carried herself with an unmistakable air, and Sebas immediately knew that the white haired lady was Lady Tiamat.

The butler quickly made his way from the porch to the gates.

Sebas had to say, the disguise Lady Tiamat chose was not too different from her usual self. The only thing he noticed that was different was that her hair was curly and white as opposed to her natural red long straight hair. The way she walked and the atmosphere surrounding her was definitely the divine aura of the Supreme Being he was loyal to.

"Lady Tiamat," he greeted, opening the creaky gate—the sound starting to grate against his draconic ears—and bowed.

"_Shhh_, Sebas! It's Hannah for now, Hannah!" she said in consternation, looking around at her surroundings to check whether anyone had heard.

"I apologize, Lady Hannah," Sebas immediately rectified his mistake.

"By the way," Tiamat looked at the front of the house in awe, "This is so luxurious."

"It is only thanks to you and Ainz-sama, My Lady, that such a base of operation can exist," Sebas bowed in gratitude, then stood up before shifting his body to the right to let her into the premises. "By the way, My Lady, how did the audience with King go? I am sure he was awed by your impeccable behavior."

Tiamat walked through the opened gate and towards the front porch with both Shroud and Sebas next to her.

'_No, in fact I messed up so badly that they're probably laughing about me right now.'_

Of course, she kept that to herself.

"Everything went great, Sebas!" she convinced herself, "The King just wanted to thank me for saving Gazef back when we visited Carne Village. You remember him, right?"

"Indeed, although the man was a bit impudent in his behavior towards a Supreme Being, he bore the mark of a virtuous man. I take it that they decided to reward you somehow?"

After a few steps, they finally stood before a pair of large oaken doors. Tiamat was about to open the door, but Sebas expertly slid in front of her and opened it for her instead.

"Thank you, Sebas. Ah, about that...They offered to give me a bunch of money and land, but I turned them down since I already got something from the previous quest. Also, it's not like anything they have can be as good as something from Nazarick anyways," Tiamat cracked a smile.

Sebas felt his chest warm up in pride. To think a Supreme Being would think of them and their home so highly was truly a wonderful thing.

"I see. Then good job for today, My Lady."

"Thank you, Sebas," Tiamat went inside the foyer and stopped to look around as her mouth fell wide open.

The inside was uncomfortably large, at least as big or even bigger than _that_ mansion.

Tiamat shivered.

The polished floor, the white walls and the furniture that looked like it came from a high-end designer. A foyer that could fit more than a dozen children. A beautiful interior that just reminded her of the _drugtouchpain_.

She could hear it, the gentle music as soft as background noise yet at the same time felt like it was being blasted in her years.

It was as if she was there in that hellhole again. A place where there were no personal boundaries, no help; a place where she was treated like an animal for sale.

Tiamat's hands slackened, and her staff fell to the ground as she hugged herself to get rid of the sudden chill that travelled through her entire body.

Surprisingly, the sound of the staff hitting the marbled floor never came. Solution, who had been standing near the door had swiftly grabbed it before it fell against the ground.

"Welcome home, Lady Tiamat," Solution bowed and extended her hand to return the staff to the Dragoness's hand, "Your staff, My Lady."

Tiamat flinched when she heard Solution's voice. She was so focused on the interior of the mansion that she didn't even feel Solution's presence.

Sebas took the staff from Solution's hands. "Solution, I think Lady Tiamat is cold. Please prepare the fireplace and some warm clothing."

"Understood," with another bow, Solution left to prepare for what Sebas had asked for.

Tiamat took a deep breath.

'_That's right, it's a different world…'_

A different world with different people. People who she trusted and loved. People who she could rely on. There was no pain, no suffering, no helplessness. Tiamat took another deep breath to try to still the storm in her heart.

"Lady Tiamat?" Sebas asked, concerned.

After a few seconds, Tiamat stopped shivering and gave Sebas a warm, gentle smile. "I'm alright, Sebas. I just remembered something from my past," Tiamat took the staff from Sebas's hands and put it in her inventory.

"Is there something wrong with the interior? If there is, I will quickly change it, My Lady."

"No, nothing like that Sebas. Everything you did here is amazing! You guys really went all out," Tiamat's eyes sparkled as she looked around the spacious area in awe.

'_The people here are people you can trust. They are different from those monsters. They are differentdifferentdifferent,"_ she repeated over and over like a mantra.

"Thank you, My Lady. Ainz-sama had told us to imitate the houses of the nobles in the Kingdom to fit in. I am glad that you find it suitable, My Lady," Sebas lifted his hand to his chest in acknowledgement.

"I see, of course Ainz would be that careful…" Tiamat mumbled, "Would you give me a tour around the place, Sebas?"

Sebas eyes jolted with immeasurable surprise, this was the moment he has been waiting for, "Gladly, My Lady. Where should I began. The previous owner had lived in this house for hundreds of years. This house is full of an ancient family's history."

"Waa, really? That's amazing!"

ლ（╹ε╹ლ）

Tiamat slumped head first on the bed, still in her adventuring persona. Even though the bed was not as soft and comforting as her own bed in Nazarick, Tiamat couldn't care less. That's how it was with new beds after all.

She released a small muffle in the pillow.

'_I feel like Sebas had put me through some sort of orientation, like that one from the bakery. Is he playing with me on purpose?'_

Who first designed this house and how the design held historical value. How the architect designed it and what kind of influence it had. Even the purpose of the interior design. Sebas had told her about all these unnecessary things. The whole tour had taken two hours. _Two_. _Hours._

Tiamat sighed, "Don't tell me this bed is important too…"

"It probably is. Don't worry about it."

She leapt up from her bed at the sound of the familiar voice.

"What? When did you get in?" she looked around the room confusedly.

"Do you need privacy?"

"Of course!"

The room she was staying in had a big bed and two sets of sofas that were placed on the right side of the room. Ainz sat down on the sofa that was located adjacently from the bed, "Just give up. As long as you're staying in the Kingdom, I'm going to order the Eight-Edge Assassin to stay with you everyday."

Tiamat looked at Ainz, "...Shroud."

"Hm, what's that?"

"Shroud. I named him Shroud. That's okay, right?"

Ainz's orbs seemed as if they were staring into her soul, "You can name the Assassin whatever you want. You seem to forget, but you're a Supreme Being of Nazarick too. Even if your build is an absolute mess."

She gave him a scowl as she walked towards the sofa to sit across from him, "I know that."

"Do you?"

Tiamat sighed, looking up at the ceiling as she slumped on the soft cushions of the sofa.

She observed how the column was made to face the way just like what Sebas had told her during his impromptu tour.

"I'm just so used to having you guys make the decisions that I sometimes don't know what to do," Tiamat moaned as she rubbed her eyes with her hands.

Ainz looked at her. She looked pale, paler than what she usually looked like. "Did they feed you there?"

"Nah. They just gave me a cup of tea and some sort of a spa treatment, which was nice. By the way, what are you doing here?" Her head was still resting against the cushions of the sofa as she tilted her head slightly so she can see the skeletal being in front of her.

"You didn't say anything after you arrived at the castle, nor did you send me any 『Messages』 about you resting in Sebas and Solution hideout."

"Wait, was I not allowed to come here?" Tiamat groaned, "Aw, it's been a while since I've seen them. Can't I stay for a few days at least?"

"The only reason why I asked them to do this was so they can bait out the people who used the World Item on Shalltear. If people saw you entering this place, then it's possible that they may draw too much attention to themselves. After all, you're a hot topic among civilians and adventurers alike," Ainz pondered, "On the other hand, maybe having such a controversial figure would be good for publicity. Hm…"

Tiamat huffed, lying back on the couch, "Tell me about it."

As if awoken out of his musing, Ainz immediately looked at her, "What happened?"

"After I met with the King, I was led to the Rose Garden to meet the Princess and Blue Rose. Oh! And they told me how a lot of rumors about me have been going around."

"Rumors? What do you mean?" his empty sockets flared red.

"Oh boy," Tiamat rubbed her hands together in anticipation, "Are you ready to hear this?"

"Yes, yes, I'm ready. Please get on with it," Ainz waved his hand for her to continue.

"Alright, so you're not going to believe this, but people talked about me being some kind of princess from a far away country and that…and that…" Tiamat began to giggle.

"That what?" Ainz impatiently tapped his finger on the armrest.

"That you're a knight from the same country and t-that we're eloping!" she burst out into a full-blown guffaw.

Ainz's jaw dropped. "Impossible. I haven't heard of such a rumor at all."

Tiamat stifled her laughter, "I-It's probably be-because you spend all your ti-time working."

He sighed in indignation, "Nonsense. Where did they even get the idea?"

Tiamat shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe that time when they called us in for...Honyopenyoko," she began to giggle again.

"It's a perfectly fine name...Anyways, was it because you said that you were hunting the same vampire that I was?" Ainz decided to ignore his friend's giggling fit.

"I guess so? Either way, the rumor is out there now, and I just thought it would be funny to see your reaction," Tiamat smirked.

"It's creative, I'd admit. Two new adventurers who come to the same city, with a similar background would obviously get a lot of attention in retrospect. But I'll just let this rumor be for now. Better me being gossiped about being with you than you with some random stranger."

Tiamat mulled over the fact that her alleged elopement with Ainz was not the only rumor that had been spreading around. There was also a rumor about her being labelled as a whore. If she was being honest with herself, she was scared of seeing Ainz's reaction towards it.

In the end, she decided to keep her mouth shut about that particular rumor.

Ainz continued as he saw her continued silence, "Anyways, did Blue Rose ask you to visit just to gossip? Why did they even invite you there?"

"They invited me to ask if I wanted to join Blue Rose. Obviously, I rejected them. We're way too busy at this point and joining others on quests would simply bring more trouble than it's worth. They even gave me an invitation," she replied, suddenly unspirited.

His jaw dropped open, "Why did I not know about this?"

"Well," she shifted in her seat, and sat up straighter while still leaning her back on the cushion, "I never planned on going."

"Let me see," he demanded.

"Uhh...okay," she tried to fish out the thin letter from her inventory and immediately gave it to the Overlord when she finally got it out. "It's just a simple invitation."

Ainz put his skeletal hand under the letter to open it and once he did, he gave it a quick read before he asked, "Is this why they invited you to the castle?"

"I don't think so, I think it was the King who invited me and the Princess and Blue Rose just tagged along."

Ainz put the letter and invitation on the wooden table between them, "So why did the King want to meet you?"

"I think it's nothing important, he just wanted to reward me for saving Gazef when he was at Carne Village."

"The King _knows_?" Ainz asked in panic only for the sheer green aura to wash over his skull, "The King knows about your true appearance?"

"Nobody mentioned anything about it, so I guess they...don't?"

Ainz put a skeletal finger under his chin, "We can never be too careful. Anyways, what else did he say?"

"I think it's just that. He wanted to give me some money, gems, or some land, _buuuut_ I refused all of them."

Tiamat could see his shoulders slightly relaxed, "I see...that's good."

"Me rejecting the King's gift?"

"No, that nothing bad happened to you."

As soon as she heard Ainz say that, Tiamat felt it again; the fluttering in her stomach came back as it filled her with warmth and a precious bit of happiness.

Happiness that she knew she didn't deserve.

"Well, I think it's because Shroud could just eradicate every human there if I was ever in trouble. He sliced one stomach open anyways."

"He'd better do that. Well, if he failed, there were a dozen more anyways."

"What? A dozen more of what?" Tiamat asked, even more confused. Sometimes, what Ainz said was even more confusing than life itself.

"Didn't you notice? I thought that one Assassin wouldn't be enough, so I sent a dozen more Eight- Edge Assassins after Shroud caught up to your carriage."

"_Haa?!_"

"As I said, I sent you a dozen oth—"

"B-But why?!"

"Well first of all, you were basically _ordered_ to go to the Capital. That could mean a lot of things. One, you have done something that warrants their wrath, or two, they want something from you. We don't know anything about the Royal Family or what they want, so the situation is getting slightly more dangerous. Especially after the Shalltear incident," Ainz slumped back onto his sofa as well.

Tiamat looked at him with sad eyes as she remembered the traumatizing incident, "We haven't found who did that to Shalltear, didn't we…"

Ainz nodded, "We haven't. But you can rest assured, after we find the culprit, I will not let him go."

"That's good. Let them suffer a slow death for doing that to Shalltear," Tiamat's hands were clenched to the point that her knuckles were turning a pale white.

Unknowingly, her eyes had once again turned a molten gold. But no one realized this except for the Overlord in front of her. Ainz was immediately reminded of the lapse of judgement she made back at Slane Theocracy, almost wincing at the memory of her wrath.

The sound she made, as if she was snarling. Her eyes were filled with rage fueled flames. He knew how dangerous it was to let one's emotions get the best of them. Afterall, he had experienced it before.

"Tia, relax," he gently patted her hand, slowly loosening her fingers from her deathgrip with his skeletal ones, "They won't get away with what they've done, I _promise_."

Ainz slightly relaxed as he pulled his hand back to his lap, observing her reaction. Her shoulders were no longer stiff with tension, and her molten eyes had reverted to the usual kind amethyst he was so familiar with.

But she still had that distant look in her eyes.

Deciding to shift from the uncomfortable subject, he started, "By the way, since you've been busy, I also want to give you a short briefing of what's been happening in Nazarick lately."

Broken out of her stupor, Tiamat lifted her eyes to him, "I hope it was nothing bad."

"No, nothing of the sort. The problem has already been dealt with. The point is, there have been intruders coming into the second base of Nazarick recently."

"Intruders?"

"Yes. As soon as they passed through the door, they were immediately transported to the prison on the fifth floor and would get interrogated by Neuronist."

Tiamat quickly straightened up, "Did Neuronist get anything out of them?"

"That's the most difficult part. Apparently, these so called intruders are actually civilians from E-Rantel that had been put under『Charm』. Don't worry," Ainz raised his hand as he saw Tiamat beginning to open her mouth in outrage, "I personally wiped their memories, healed their injuries, and sent them back home through the guild after I found out."

"Oh, okay," she slumped back against the sofa, "Why didn't you tell me earlier? I could've helped too, you know," she covered her eyes with the back of her hand. "Do you not trust me?"

Ainz felt his non-existent heart ache at her statement. "I do. You've done so much for Nazarick: the paperwork that I'm supposed to be doing by myself, the budgeting, and basically everything else. _I'm _the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown, and this is my responsibility. That is why I chose not to bother you with it."

"Ainz…" Tiamat bit her lower lip, "You should've told me, you idiot. I'm your guildmate, so just _please _let me help you. Don't force yourself to do all of this alone."

"You have helped enough. Honestly, I feel pathetic for having to rely on you so much like this. What kind of Guildmaster relies on his members to solve the guild's problems? Besides—"

Tiamat cut him off, "That's what a good guildmaster should do. You're not alone, so stop acting like you are."

Ainz stared into her eyes for a few seconds before he suddenly stood up, "Either way, the problem has been solved, and you don't have to worry about it anymore. I just wanted to inform you of everything that had happened while you were gone. I'm going to go back now, because after all," Tiamat swore she saw a sad grin on his skeletal features, "I have a mountain of paperwork to go over."

"Ainz, wait—" before she could even get up, he had opened 『Gate』 and transported himself out of her room, leaving her alone on the sofa with the invitation letter laying on the wooden coffee table.

"Why… why won't you trust me…?" a broken whisper echoed in the lonely room.

* * *

**Omake: Thoughts of a Princess**

* * *

As soon as Climb and the Silver Priestess had left the room, the members of Blue Rose immediately went into panic mode. All of them were speaking at the same time, excluding the usually quiet twins.

"Such audacity. For her to blatantly reject our invitation...Who does she think she is?"

Lakyus looked at Evileye with an amused smile, "Look, the pot is calling the kettle black."

"_Ha!_" Gagaran laughed, "Good one Lakyus!"

Evileye clicked her tongue, "Shut up you two."

"Well, you didn't—"

"—want to join either," the twins jabbed at Evil-Eye.

"That's true but...arrgh! Can't that girl see how all those idiots in the Court are going to go after her?! And then she just flat-out rejects us..._haaaaa_," Evil-Eye went from exasperated to furious to exasperated again in a span of a few seconds.

Lakyus fondly looked at her small masked comrade. "Surely she has her own reasons, Evil-Eye. Reasons that prevent her from associating with us."

"Perhaps—"

"—something to do with her faith?"

"Faith?" Evileye asked, turning her head to look at the twins. But soon, a wave of realization washed over her, "Ah, you're talking about her deity. Well, if it's different from the Six Great Gods, then who knows what her god requires."

"No," Lakyus shook her head, "I didn't get that sort of feeling from her. Whoever she is, she's definitely not some sort of zealot."

"So not like that stupid Sunlight Scripture we fought against in that demihuman village?" Gagaran spoke up.

"It would be pretty hard to top those nutjobs," Evil-Eye mused, "They were way too intense."

Renner smiled behind her teacup. It didn't matter if the Priestess didn't join Blue Rose. Everything would still go according to plan.

Even still, she felt like it was such a waste of opportunity. Someone of the Silver Priestess's caliber would have certainly boosted her name to the skies, making her _mask_ much more appealing to the people of the Kingdom—something that would have helped her further her goals. But that didn't matter.

Renner heard the familiar sound of footsteps outside the door, footsteps that she was well accustomed with. The moment she heard someone knocking on the door, she stood up from the chair and rushed towards the room's entrance.

"Come in, Climb!" she exclaimed with genuine cheerfulness.

Lakyus chuckled, amused that the Princess knew her bodyguard's footsteps by heart. Her innocent friend knew who was outside before they even had a chance to announce their presence.

Climb opened the door, letting himself in before gently closing it, "I have returned," he lowered his head towards the Princess.

"Good job, Climb!" Renner gently smiled at him, an innocent smile that she knew Climb liked. "With that being said, I have other matters to attend to, so I will excuse myself for today," Renner waved to the members of Blue Rose who bid her farewell in varying degrees of enthusiasm.

However, after a few steps, she stopped completely and elegantly turned around. Her hair swished, following the movement of her body; a sight that Climb had to tear his eyes away from when he heard the Princess cheerfully say, "By the way, you can stay in the room if you still want to use it."

"I'd appreciate that, thank you Princess," Lakyus tilted her head gratefully.

"It's no problem, afterall, we're friends aren't we? Take all the time you need!" Renner beamed at Blue Rose, before turning around to jog towards Climb, linking her arms with his. "Let's go, Climb!"

"C-Certainly, Princess. Also, I apologize for saying this, Renner-sama, but it would be inappropriate for us to be seen like this," Climb stammered.

"Awwww, you're no fun, Climb," Renner pouted as she reluctantly released her puppy's arm.

Renner walked side by side with Climb down the familiar hallway. The rich marble floor expanded throughout the entire castle, branching off into several open verandas that allowed people passing by to view the grandeur of the Rose Garden. However, her mood worsened with every step she took. No amount of luxury or flowery scents could make her forget what she saw.

She still remembered how the Priestess positioned himself in front of Climb, her body hovering above him. How she positioned her hand to touch Climb, to help him stand, _her_ Climb.

But the worst thing of all, was how easy it was for Climb to take the dainty hand that was offered to him.

She wanted to pluck her fingers off one by one. The Priestess's fingers that dared to brush against her Climb. Then she would skin her alive for almost pressing her body against her Climb.

Renner almost gritted her teeth in frustration. _Almost._

'_Climb belongs to only me!'_

The very memory caused her to stop in her tracks.

"Princess?" Climb asked, wondering why the Princess had stopped walking. Usually, she would be smiling her usual smile and chatter with him.

But this time, she wasn't.

As Climb stepped forward to see what was bothering the Princess, he saw it. A glimpse of a dark expression flashed across the Princess's face.

Climb blinked. Surely it was just a trick of light?

"What is it, Climb?" Renner asked lovingly with the tone and expression that he knew and loved.

"Is there something wrong?" Climb asked, worried about her.

The Princess's eyes turned downcast, her lips curving down into a frown. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she was sad.

She looked like a wilted rose in a poorly tended garden.

Climb's heart ached.

"Princess Renner," Climb pushed on, "Is there something bothering you? Please tell me so that I can fix it."

"Climb, I want you to be honest with me."

"Of course, Princess!" he immediately stood up straighter—taking it as an order—even though he knew that the Princess didn't mean it like that.

Renner looked at him, putting her small hand on her lips as she thought about what to say to Climb.

At least that's what Climb thought.

"W-What," she looked away, expertly feigning shyness, "Do you think of Hannah-san?"

Climb looked at the Princess's innocent sapphire eyes, "What do I think of her?" he repeated, "If I may be so bold, Princess, why are you asking me this?"

"U-Uhm, y-you see…"

Climb patiently waited. He knew this part of the Princess. On the rare occasions when he was being blunt, she would always stammer and get embarrassed. He remembered asking why, and she had responded with _'A Princess isn't supposed to stammer. A Princess should be eloquent at all times.'_

"U-Uh, i-it's b-because, Hannah-san is b-beautiful."

"So you were asking me that question to see if I was thinking the same thing?" he confirmed.

The Princess shyly nodded, her ears reddening in embarrassment.

"For me, I can see that she's definitely strong. Even if I trained like crazy, I couldn't even see her striking Gagaran-sama. Her movements were so fast that I couldn't even follow her movements. Moreover," Climb took a deep breath before continuing, "As the rumors say, I would agree that she's beautiful."

Renner looked even more downcast than before, "Is that so?" she muttered.

The Knight took a deep breath before shouting, "But to me there is no one prettier than you Princess! So you can rest assured!"

Renner looked at him with widened eyes, her crimson face reddening even more. To Climb, they were the blushes of an innocent rose: colored cheeks infused with a smile that shone in a way only true joy could bring.

But Renner thought differently.

'_Ah, yes! This is the Climb I know and love!'_

"Is that so?" she cheerfully said, her steps infused with a light bounce, "Thank you for the compliment, Climb. I too, think that Climb is the most handsome and strongest knight there is!" she clapped happily.

Climb could feel the heat burning on his cheeks, "S-Such grand words. I definitely do not deserve such a compliment, Renner-sama."

Renner suppressed a diabolic grin. She could tell that those words were as genuine as his blush. His usual tan skin had an adorable rosiness to it.

It was cute.

"I think you're the best knight in the entire world, Climb!" she complimented him even more as they walked down the hallway.

"P-Princess!"

'_You're so cute Climb! I love you so much! I love you, I love you, IloveyouIloveyouIloveyouIloveyou!'_

Renner smiled as she watched his reactions.

Sadly, she had to keep her feelings bottled up.

But every cloud had a silver lining.

The day where she could be her true self would come. Where she could love him to the best of her abilities. Where all his adoration and admiration would be pointed at her. Where Climb would undoubtedly belong to her and only _her_.

For now, she could patiently wait until that day arrived.

* * *

**Special Christmas Omake: It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!**

* * *

The world outside was silent, still, and deadly.

There were no sounds of leaves rustling, no birdsong, no whispers of grass.

Everything was veiled in a layer of candyfloss white snow and silky silver frost that reflected the world in its polished and beautifully biting malice.

The frost hated everything. As it fell down from the sky, it strangled everything into silence with its cold gleam. However, the Fifth Floor was even colder than that.

The Fifth Floor was the ice-cold fangs of Jack Frost that bit deeply into the flesh and blood of the prisoners on the floor, extracting their life-force and leaving their corpses clay-cold and drained.

However, the master of the floor was nowhere to be found.

* * *

The fire crackled and hissed, filling the kitchen with a ferocious yet comfortable warmth.

There were a myriad of smells wafting throughout the whole floor. Some were strong and earthy, others were peppery, and yet others were fruity like grape-scented wine.

Those who had good ears could hear the faint crackling of goose-fat dripping onto tin foil in thick droplets, and for those who couldn't hear—the unique scent of oil and game drifted into the all the rooms across the Ninth Floor, overloading the noses of all who could catch a sniff of the blessed scent with pleasure.

The exotic and spicy whisper of its scent made stomachs rumble and mouths water.

Everyone was seduced, tempted by the delicious smell. The Homunculi maids gazes lingered on the table filled to the brim with food that they were unfamiliar with. But the only thing that stopped them from consuming all these delicious morsels was the Supreme Being herself who was currently using the kitchen at that very moment.

Everyone, including the oldest sister and the leader of the Pleiades maids.

As soon as she landed on the Ninth Floor, her knees wavered for a brief instance from all the mouth-watering fragrances assaulting her nostrils. Even though she was trying her best to act indifferent amongst the eyes that had been watching the Supreme Being in the kitchen, she had to admit that the Supreme Being had created something truly magnificent.

Yuri was no stranger to Lady Tiamat's cooking. She usually accompanied the Dragoness in her cooking sprees, but, nothing, _nothing_, could come close to something of this caliber.

As soon as Yuri had entered the kitchen, her pace a little quicker than usual, she was immediately greeted by the brilliance of the Supreme Being as the red haired cook pinched a bit of salt between her index finger and thumb to throw on the dish she was cooking.

"Yuri!" Tiamat shouted happily, her head jerking up and her tail slamming up and down on the floor a few times, smacking the marbled ground to show how happy the Dragoness was, "Welcome back!"

To Yuri, Lady Tiamat was her own miracle. The Dragoness saw brilliance in food, a potential to help and heal others, a way to show them how even the ordinary could become sublime.

To Yuri, it was Lady Tiamat's genius at play. The Supreme Being wasn't even using her 『Cooking』skill, rather, she was cooking everything manually. Yuri marvelled at how Lady Tiamat's great mind was immersed in every sense. Or maybe the Cooking skill was passive? Either way, her Lady was truly impressive.

"My Lady, what is the occasion?" Yuri quietly approached the Supreme Being, not wanting to disturb her from the creation of such wonderful dishes.

"Hm? This? Christmas, of course!" Tiamat excitedly responded, a manic grin on her face as she furiously whisked away at the giant bowl she was hugging with one arm.

"Christmas, My Lady?" an unfamiliar term had hit her.

"Yep!" Tiamat stopped whisking the cream, "Have you given all the Floor Guardians the invitations I made?"

Yuri nodded, "Yes, My Lady. I have sent the invitation to everyone's respective floors. However, I could not find Cocytus-sama's current location."

"Isn't he in the Lizardmen Village, as usual?" the Dragoness curiously asked, a pout appearing on her face as she tilted her head.

Yuri had the blasphemous urge to pinch Lady Tiamat's cheeks.

"I have confirmed this with my youngest sister, and she mentioned that Cocytus-sama has not used any of the teleportation channels in Nazarick for two months."

"_What?_" Tiamat's hands loosened and she scrambled to catch the bowl of cream before it spilled over the counter, "Two months?! Doesn't that mean he's stuck somewhere and can't get out?"

"Perhaps so, My Lady. Should we go look for him?"

The blissful aura around the Supreme Being immediately turned to worry as she paced back and forth on the kitchen floor, worrying about the Floor Guardian of the Fifth Floor.

"I'm sure he's fine, but something could always happen…" Tiamat had placed the bowl down and was now biting her fingernails. "What if… What if he's stuck in one of the tunnels on the First Floor?"

Yuri could practically see what her Lady was imagining.

Indeed, the First Floor had a small tunnel that led to Kyouhukou's place. But it was unlikely that the Guardian of the Fifth Floor would wander to the First Floor unless it was absolutely necessary.

Cocytus-sama was the tallest Floor Guardian out of all of them. Just the image of his broad shoulders getting stuck in such a teensy weensy space was already uncomfortable. However, there was also her younger sister who could have easily transported the Ruler of the Frozen Glacier somewhere else, or perhaps Mare-sama had lended his『Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown』to Cocytus-sama so that the Vermin Lord wouldn't have to transverse the tight tunnels.

"I think it is unlikely, My Lady," Yuri aptly answered.

However, what she said did absolutely nothing to ease the Supreme Being's worry.

"What if something happened? Something terrible that was super strong? Like, like the Ten Archangels or something? What if—"

"I'm sure Cocytus-sama is in perfectly good health, My Lady," Yuri interjected, her own heart filling with worry as she watched the Dragoness pace back and forth, "If an enemy that powerful showed up, I am sure that Ainz-sama would have already known about it and told the rest of us."

Tiamat stopped in her steps. "Yeah. _Yeah!_ You're right. Of course Ainz would already know about something like that. Still, I wonder where Cocytus went…"

"Then, I'll try my best to look for him," Yuri said with certainty, confident that she would find the Floor Guardian the Supreme Being was looking for.

"Should I help you find him too?" Tiamat muttered as she wrung her hands helplessly, her whisked cream forgotten as it had lost all of its air.

"There is no need, My Lady," Yuri interjected, bringing Tiamat out of her brooding, "Please focus on… Christmas, I promise you I will find him by the end of the day."

"I understand, Yuri. In that case, I look forward to seeing both of you at dinner time."

"Me too, My Lady. Me too."

* * *

In a certain room on the Ninth Floor of Nazarick, stood a large round tea-table that bore a silver tea kettle. Dainty cups and saucers of the best porcelain were grouped about it; a miniature silver tray held a small bowl full of sugar, a cream-pot, and a half dozen golf spoons.

The center was decorated with a bowl of freshly plucked flowers and two crystal candelabras. Scattered throughout were plates of sandwiches, cakes, bonbons, and crystallized fruits.

The quantity and variety of refreshments—courtesy of their Dragoness, Lady Tiamat—were more than enough to feed the six maids gathered around the table.

"Haaa…" Narberal sighed, slumping against her chair.

"Ara, Nar-chan, you sound tired," Yuri commented, eyes closed as she took a small sip from her cup.

"Of course, Yuri nee-sama," Narberal sat up straighter, "Momon-sa—No, I received orders from Ainz-sama, so I can't relax."

"That, I know," a monotone voice interjected, Shizu Delta, their little sister who had been sipping her juice as she was not a fan of tea, "With Ainz-sama, it's happy, but scary."

Narberal had a strong urge to pinch her little sister's cheek, and so she did. Meanwhile, Shizu kept sipping from her straw.

"That's right Shizu," Narberal tenderly smiled at her in a rare moment of softness, "But for Ainz-sama's orders, I will carry them out with all my heart and—"

Yuri clapped her hand three times, stopping her sister from going on with what surely would turn into a lengthy tangent, "We will end the chit chat there. We will now start the monthly Pleiades report and the tea party."

"Yuri nee-sama~ Why is this monthly report a lot sooner than before~?" Entoma curiously asked, digging into one of the sandwiches closest to her.

"Excellent observation Entoma," Yuri complimented, "The reason why the monthly Pleiades report has been moved up is because something urgent has come up."

"Something urgent?" Solution elegantly replied, arching an eyebrow.

"What is it, Yuri-nee ~su?" Lupusregina asked back.

"Lady Tiamat had asked for our help," Yuri announced, her glasses glinting as she pushed them up, "It seems that Cocytus-sama has been missing for two months, and no one knows where he is."

"Shouldn't Cocytus-sama be out training those Lizards~su?" Lupusregina asked once again with her mouth full, the chewed up food on display for the whole world to see.

Yuri's eye twitched and her finger ever-so-slightly jerked towards the silver butter knife near her.

Silver as weak as the knife would be incapable of harming her werewolf sister in the slightest, but it would still make her _extremely _uncomfortable.

Lupusregina nervously gulped down the food she had been chewing and sweatdropped.

"P-Please go on ~su… "

"Anyways… We have received important information from our youngest sister that Cocytus-sama had not used the teleportation channels in this time frame, so we can safely assume that he is still within Nazarick's grounds."

"Maybe he went out to eat~?" Entoma raised her hand as she innocently tilted her head.

"Entoma," Solution softly chided her insectoid sister, "You've heard from Yuri-nee that Cocytus-sama had not used any of the teleportation channels. That kind of question is unnecessary."

"Ara~ Solution," Entoma happily laughed, "We need to confirm just to be sure~ This is an important monthly meeting after all~"

Yuri once again clapped three times, silencing her siblings, "That's enough, both of you."

"I understand."

"Yes~"

"Before I, the Deputy Leader, Yuri Alpha open this session, I need to ask you—my sisters—for help."

"Of course~su!" Lupusregina jumped up, fist pumping the air.

"I was going to bully Kyouhukou-san after this, but looking for Cocytus-sama will be fun too~" Entoma shoved one last sandwich under her face before getting up from her seat.

"Understood," both Solution and Narberal replied at the same time.

"Understood," Shizu responded monotonically, a moment behind Solution and Narberal.

* * *

_Three hours later_

"Lupus! Do you see anything there?" Yuri called out from the other end of the Spa Resort Nazarick.

"Nope~su!" Lupusregina cheerfully shouted as she climbed down from the wall separating the men and women's changing section.

"Nothing here either~ Yuri nee-sama," Entoma's muffled voice wafted from the locker area—an absolute mess at the moment—as she rummaged through all of the lockers.

"Entoma, Cocytus-sama is unlikely to fit in an enclosure that small," Solution called out to her younger sibling as she emerged from one of the pools, her body quickly coalescing together.

"We really don't have much to go on…" Narberal let out a sigh as she leaned against one of the lion statues next to the pool Solution had climbed out from. "Lady Tiamat will be disappointed in us…"

"There, there Nar-chan. We'll definitely find Cocytus-sama before dinner time," Yuri walked over to Narberal and gently rubbed her back, "Even if we don't find him, Lady Tiamat would understand."

"That's not enough; we _have _to succeed, Yuri nee-sama," Narberal gritted her teeth as she tightened her grip on the lion statue.

"Geez, lighten up a bit Nar-chan~su," Lupusregina poked the doppelganger on the nose.

"Lighten up? Lighten up?! Do you even understand how serious our situation is right now? We've been given an important task by a Supreme Being and you're talking about _lightening up?_" Narberal jabbed her finger into Lupusregina's chest, "Is this how you're usually like when Ainz-sama sends you out to Carne to deal with the insects? A complete and utter _fool?_"

As the rest of the sisters watched in shock as Narberal went off on Lupusregina, the statue that the doppelganger had been clutching let out a slight rumble. Shizu narrowed her eyes at the motionless stone lion.

"Woah, calm down there Nar-chan," Lupusregina—dropping her typical verbal tic—raised both of her hands up in front of her, "I'm not trying to start anything."

"That's just the problem, you never try," Narberal bitterly replied before spitting on the ground. Entoma let out a gasp as she covered her mouth with her sleeves."

"You trying to start shit, Nar-chan?" Lupusregina's eyes glinted with a feral light, before they widened in confusion.

"What is it?" Narberal narrowed her eyes, confused at her sister's sudden change in behavior.

"**TO NOT KNOW ETIQUETTE MEANS YOU HAVE NO RIGHTS TO ENTER THE BATH. EXTERMINATE.**"

"Move, you dummy~su!" Lupusregina grabbed Narberal, quickly sidestepping the deceptively quick stone claw that swung at the space she and Narberal were occupying just a moment ago.

'_What is going on…' _Yuri, the leader of the Cocytus search expedition, let out a heavy exhale.

"The lion statue is a golem," Shizu replied matter-of-factly, unslinging her rifle and aiming it at the rampaging golem.

"Yes, I've figured that out Shizu-chan. It's just that… _uuughhhhh_," the leader of the Pleiades face-palmed.

"Don't worry, Yuri nee-san," Solution pulled out a set of knives, "We'll handle this."

"I don't think knives are going to hurt a golem~ Sol-chan," Entoma cheerfully looked out from one of the lockers she had been searching.

"I agree," Shizu bluntly concurred, her bullets precisely chipping off bits of the golem as she did.

"Oh…" Solution looked at her daggers with a flat look in her eyes before putting them away, "That makes sense."

"Oi! Are none of you going to help~su?" Lupusregina merrily shouted as she and Narberal took turns smacking the golem around.

"Hmm, It looks like you two have the problem managed. The golem triggered because the two of you were being foolish anyways," Solution sat down on a nearby bench with a lazy smile and watched her two sisters land hit after hit on the stone lion.

"Why! _Is_! _**Nothing**_! _**GOING**_! **RIGHT**!" Narberal slammed her fist on the lion's head with each word, creating cracks along the golem's features as she did so. On the last hit, the maid raised both her fists high above her and brought them down with terrifying strength on the annoying construct, finally shattering it to pieces.

"As expected of Narberal~" Entome jumped happily in place as she stomped on the remnants of the defeated golem who dared to touch her sisters.

"Good job~su!" Lupusregina nudged Narberal with her shoulder, her mouth in a wide canine grin. With her sister's last burst of emotion, the golem had finally been defeated.

"You're not so bad yourself," Narberal muttered, looking away from the werewolf maid.

"He he~," Lupusregina went to hug Narberal's back, "Nar-chan, such a tsun-tsun~su."

"L-Let me go!" Narberal yelped, and with the last word she tried her hardest to push Lupusregina away from her. Sadly, the red-haired maid's iron grip was wrapped around Narberal's waist, unwilling to let go.

"My, my, shy Narberal. What a rare sight," Solution chimed in smugly, still sitting on the same bench.

"S-Shut up!"

"Nar-chan looks like a strawberry~ Can I lick her cheeks?" Entome asked, just the sight of the doppelganger maid's slightly reddening cheeks reminded her of the strawberry cake Lady Tiamat had baked for them.

"No, you cannot eat your sister, Entoma," Yuri answered, "But you are right Solution, it is indeed—"

"Cute," Shizu interjected.

"That is true, Shizu," Yuri desperately wanted to pat her sister's head for such an adorable comment, but she had to refrain. Afterall, they had a very important mission to finish.

"We've been looking for Cocytus-sama everywhere~" Entoma sighed, resting her head on top of the ruined golem as if she was about to take a quick nap.

"I wonder where he is~su," Lupusregina wondered, still hugging a resigned Narberal tightly. The doppelganger had given up on tearing the werewolf away.

"Is there any other place we haven't checked yet?" Solution tapped her chin with her index finger, one slender leg crossed over the other as it elegantly swung back and forth.

Narberal crossed her arms over Lupusregina's, "There's one more place we haven't checked. We ruled it out since it's such an easy place to sweep through, but there is no way he could be there."

"I see. Then let us go there…"

* * *

"This room is too obvious," Narberal protested.

"My, how so?" Solution teased, poking Narberal in the cheek.

The Pleiades sisters were standing in front of the massive ornate double doors of the room that they were all familiar with. A room that was used often by both the Supreme Beings and the Floor Guardians.

"This room is usually empty right? We could have spotted the tall and mighty Cocytus-sama from a mile away," the doppelganger maid replied, shooting an intense glare at Solution, who only gently giggled.

"Agreed," Shizu's monotone voice came from behind, concurring with the statement Narberal had just made.

"But this is the only room we haven't checked yet~su!" Lupusregina turned to look at the two of them.

"Lupusregina is right," Yuri chided, moving ahead of her sisters and right before the door as she placed her arms in preparation to push the door open, "Afterall, when you lose something, it's always in the last place you look."

An excited Entoma observed from the sidelines as she twirled in place.

Yuri finally pushed open the doors with a mighty heave.

The Throne Room that lied in the deepest reaches of the infamous dungeon. The unfinished Lemegeton—awe-inspiring and surely powerful despite its incompleteness—stood between it and the rest of Nazarick, acting as the final defense for the heart of Nazarick.

The room itself was an exquisite piece of work. A wide, high room—enough for several hundred people—with a ceiling that seemed to stretch to the skies and surrounding walls of purest alabaster, with golden decorations as highlights.

Hanging from the ceiling were numerous chandeliers made of precious stones of all colors of the rainbow that emitted a fantastic, dreamlike radiance. Numerous flags emblazoned with different symbols—one for each of the Supreme Beings—hung from flagpoles embedded in the walls.

In the center of the Throne Room was a platform forged with gold and silver, and carved into it was a flight of stairs about ten steps high. Atop these stairs sat a monolithic throne, carved out of a single piece of obsidian crystal whose back was high enough to touch the ceiling above it. A huge red banner hung down behind it, proudly displaying the symbol of the guild.

"See," Narberal snarked, "I told you that there was nothing in here—"

"Wow! What's that~su?" Lupusregina cut her off as she pointed towards an extremely out of place oddly shaped figure wrapped in green bandages.

There's a lush green..._thing_ on the left side of the throne, a place where Albedo was supposed to stand as the Overseer of Nazarick. The tree seems to be rather bulky. At the top, there's a gold star that extends towards the ceiling and twinkling treasures wrapped in spider web strings wraps around it.

Entoma skipped over to the tree to take a closer look. The green-wrapped stout figure was decorated in a variety of magic items that had surely come from the Treasury.

There was a golden sword wrapped around it and a silver axe at the back. Treasures such as pearls and gold coins are not an exception, while gems and diamond rings decorated the peripheral of the tree skirt.

"Uwu~? What's this?" Entoma gingerly poked the bizarre decoration.

The green mass rumbled. "Aura. Mare. Is. It. Time. Yet?"

"This voice…" Solution gasped.

"There's no way…" Narberal muttered.

"This is insane~su!" Lupusregina exclaimed.

"Waa…" was the only response Shizu could give in this bizarre situation.

"C-Cocytus-sama?!" Yuri yelled out.

"Waaaa, Cocytus-sama is a Christmas tree!" Entoma cheered, arms raised high.

"What's a Christmas tree?" Narberal curiously asked, leaning in closer to examine the bound Cocytus.

"A Christm—" Shizu began to respond before the grand doors to the Throne Room suddenly opened.

"A Christmas tree is a tree decorated for a festival," an overbearing aura fell upon them as a porcelain-white skeleton dressed in a robe of shadows walked into the room. "It is typically adorned with a variety of shiny baubles, much like the ones hung on Cocytus."

Ainz walked up to the wrapped Floor Guardian and plucked an intricately carved angel statuette off. "In this case, magic items work as well apparently."

The maids jolted back, their eyes widening in shock as they hadn't expected to see their god enter the Throne room.

Thankfully, the oldest of the Pleiades quickly recovered bearings.

"Ainz-sama," Yuri greeted as she bowed, the rest of her sisters following.

"With that being said," Ainz slowly walked to the throne and slumped down on it, sighing as he did so, "What were you all doing to Cocytus?"

His intense aura of despair washed over the maids like a tsunami, and they couldn't help but to bow their heads even lower.

"We apologize for disturbing you, Ainz-sama," Yuri answered swiftly, "However, we had received an order from Lady Tiamat to look for Cocytus-sama as he had been missing for two months."

"Ah, you too?"

Yuri lifted her head up in surprise in a moment of discomposure, "You too, Ainz-sama?" she inquired.

"You see," Ainz started fiddling with the angel statuette, "That dumb dra—I mean, Tiamat had also asked me to help look for Cocytus."

Yuri's shoulders immediately slumped, "Oh…"

Did Lady Tiamat ask Ainz-sama because she thought they would be incapable of looking for Cocytus-sama? Was their competence that questionable?

Sensing some hesitation, Ainz hurriedly explained to the maids, "I can assure you that it's probably not as what you think it is."

"Ainz-sama?" the maids all lifted their heads in confusion.

"Tia was busy cooking a feast and she's panicking since she couldn't look for Cocytus herself, so she contacted everyone including the Floor Guardians. Luckily, the first place I decided to search was the Throne Room, and lo and behold, I found him there with you. Truly, a job well done, Pleiades!" Ainz congratulated them with a regal tone.

"Ainz-sama!" they swooned.

"Now, Cocytus…" Ainz looked over the sad state of his Floor Guardian.

"Ainz. Sama." the blue warrior greeted.

"Care to explain to me what happened?"

"Aura. And. Mare. Told. Me. That. It's. Supposed. To. Be. A. Halloween. Costume."

"_What_—I mean, hn, I see…" Ainz replied stoically, calmly stroking his chin with his hand, "I'll make sure to reprimand them later. But for now, please go to the dining room and enjoy the feast Tia had made for you, all of you."

"Yes! Ainz. Sama."

"It will be as you will."

Slowly, one by one, they exited the Throne Room; the Pleiades maids first, followed by the hobbling Cocytus—since he was bandaged from head to toe—and the various decorations attached to him jingled with a click-clack sound as they bounced up and down against his exoskeleton, leaving Ainz alone by himself.

The Overlord sighed, "I suppose it's time to get going as well," he spoke to the empty room, "I haven't tried eating since we've arrived in this world…"

Standing up, Ainz made for a truly majestic sight as he opened a『Gate』with practiced movements, hands waving around in what seemed to be mystical patterns to the untrained eye. Before he walked through the violet rift, he turned around and gazed at the spot where Cocytus had once stood for two months. Shaking his head, he hummed an old Christmas melody as he stepped through the portal.

The echo of terribly off-key humming resounded for no one to hear.

* * *

Ainz's foot gently stepped out onto the dirt ground of the Arena, the scent of countless delicacies hitting his senses as soon as he did.

'_Tia has really outdone herself this time…' _he lightly chuckled as he walked towards the center of the Arena where countless tables filled with food were crowded around by the many denizens of Nazarick. Ainz quietly casted 『Perfect Unknowable』on himself.

Slowly and carefully navigated through the mass of festive bodies, he finally found Tiamat pacing back and forth in the center of the vibrant Arena.

He cast off his invisibility spell.

Her apron fluttered like a flag in a spring breeze, and as soon as her amethyst eyes landed on him, she immediately ran towards his direction.

"Ainz, how was it? Did you find him? Is he in good health? Did we get attacked? Is he starving? Where did you find him? What happened? Did he—"

In a moment of boldness, Ainz gently put a skeletal finger on her lips to quiet her down.

"I did find him, but the Pleiades Maids got to him first. I think there's a misunderstanding between Aura and Mare regarding Cocytus, he said it was supposed to be a Halloween costume."

"_What?!_"

"Exactly," Ainz sighed, "Honestly, your Halloween fiasco caused more trouble than it was worth."

Ainz could see a heavy cloud of guilt form over her as her face immediately fell.

"Sorry…" she said softly, her face turned away as she rubbed her arm. Ainz's non-existent stomach dropped.

"Don't apologize," he patted her head, "I understand that you were just trying to tell the Floor Guardians about the stuff that we had in our old world."

"Hn," she nodded.

"But if you are truly sorry, then you have to help Cocytus with his work since he's two months behind now," he teased.

"I was going to help him anyways," she snarked back, sticking her tongue out.

A warm feeling bloomed in his chest for only for a precious, short moment.

"Well," he looked over the perfect, picturesque gathering, where the members of Nazarick were all happily eating together. Demon, dragonoid, slime, spider, none of that mattered before the delicious spread that was served in front of them.

He saw a rare moment where Albedo was acting civil with Shalltear, Demiurge and the Evil Lords were mingling with the lower ranked demons, Cocytus's decoration was being admired by Kyouhukou's children, Aura and Mare joined in to admire their handiwork. Even Pandora's Actor had left the Treasury to enjoy the precious time spent with everyone.

Ainz smiled as he saw Aureole Omega and Victim teleport onto the floor after confirming everyone was there. The youngest of the Pleiades, in an out of character moment, ran towards the rest of her sisters and was welcomed with a big warm hug from all of them at once.

It was a very beautiful sight.

Ainz glanced at Tiamat, captivated by her warm smile.

And it was even more beautiful with her by his side.

"Might as well enjoy what we have now," Ainz softly murmured as he looked over the happy faces of the denizens of Nazarick digging into the feast Tia had created.

Tia nodded, looking at the scene with a soft smile and tender eyes, "Yeah…"

**Today, be thankful and think how rich you are. Your family is priceless, your time is gold, and your health is wealth. -Zig Ziglar.**

_**Happy Belated Christmas!**_

* * *

**BONUS ROUND!**

* * *

"Ainz, Ainz," Tiamat called out to Ainz who was mingling with the homunculi maids as she approached him with a bowl of what seemed to be a really red soup in her hands.

"What is it Tia?"

"I cooked something for you," Tia raised up a spoonful of soup to his mouth, "Say _aaaah—_"

"No."

"Awh, why not?"

Ainz looked over the maids and other various monsters whose idle chatter had quieted down and were now all looking at Tia and him as if they were some kind of spectacle.

The burn of embarrassment grew over his whole body, but soon disappeared thanks to his undead perks.

'_Might as well get this over with,'_ he thought to himself.

He lowered his head and opened his jaw, allowing Tiamat to pour the contents of the spoon down his mouth, making sure that he got every single last drop.

"HA! You just got pranked boi! What I made is a really-really spicy ramen with szechuan peppers and carolina reapers that will definitely burn your tongue off!"

Ainz quieted down for a few seconds, before gulping the soup inside his mouth down.

"It's..._flavorful…_"

"What?"

"Delicious."

"_Eh?_"

"Give me that," he snatched the whole bowl from her and proceeded to gulp it all down with an enthusiasm she had never seen from him before.

"No, don't do that! It's really spicy, you could get indigestion!"

"Screw that. Make me another one! Flavor! The flavor that I have been searching for is finally here!"

As soon as the rest of the denizens of Nazarick heard that, another new item made its way to the permanent menu down in the cafeteria.

Ainz-sama's favorite: **Deadly Spicy Ramen!**

* * *

**A/N: I want more time to write ;A; the Christmas omake itself took us two months to make, thats just sad ;_;**

**Hackslashbash: Sorry about the slow updates folks; we'll try to get more chapters out, but college and work is starting back up for both of us. Also, very late Christmas omake! :)**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**elmeted **T**yrant **T**rounces **P**easant **S**od (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**evious **i**nventor **s**parks **c**reation **o**n**r**ejected **d**evices** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	27. CHAPTER 27: Proposition

**Collection of Ashurbanipal - Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth - **

**Volume XLI, Chapter IX—Rebirth**

She greedily gulped in the air around her. It felt as if she was a drowning person who was suddenly pulled over water.

The Dragon felt cold, naked; things that didn't help her first impression of the two strangers before her.

One was a skeleton that was wreathed in an overbearing aura of umbral might. The other looked far less intimidating—a humanoid in what appeared to be a paladin's armor—though this did nothing to ease her unrest.

She immediately jumped away as she warily hissed at the two strangers. It was then that she noticed an odd way in which she had jumped.

The Dragon looked down at her hands.

Hands?

She patted every single square inch of her body.

Where were the scales she had suffered so much for? Where were her teeth? Why did she have human hands and feet?

_Whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhy?_

This body could not be her own.

Before she could demand an explanation from the two strangers, the white paladin stepped forward—hands up in a non-threatening gesture—as he attempted to persuade the Dragon to rest easy.

This only served to set off the already nervous Dragon. The mighty beast in human form exhaled a great searing pillar of fire.

The white paladin was caught off guard as he skidded back, his skeletal friend quickly casting mythical wards that would guard against even the most infernal flames.

The storm of scorching dragonflame slammed into the ice-blue barrier, setting the entire cavern awash in blinding light.

At this, the God of Death was finally pushed to his breaking point. His friend had taken unnecessary risks for a stranger and now she had the nerve to burn his own home.

His obsidian presence seemingly filled the room with a suffocating pressure. At this, the Dragon finally halted her assault, backing away from the formidable being and his authoritative, regal voice.

After much unneeded conflict, they finally calmed down enough to talk civilly.

The white paladin explained how he had went on a quest to revive her after her unjust death. How he had transversed countless realms, looking for aid—even down to the God of the Dead—until he finally took the ultimate gamble with a dubious deity of Fortune.

Upon hearing all of this, the Dragon shed a tear, incredulous that someone would show her such compassion. To her, sacrificing one's self to save a friend was the greatest form of virtue—a belief that was only strengthened by her late friend's untimely death—and to think that a stranger she had only sparred with once would go so far to help her brought her to her knees in gratitude.

After frantic comforting from her two new friends, the Dragon sat down with the Overlord of Death and the Paladin of Pure Silver, the bizarre group that would one day become myths sharing stories of their lives.

Their gathering continued with great cheer until the Dragon shared the death of her friend. Outraged, the Overlord and the Paladin grimaced in anger, pledging their unconditional aid to the Dragon if she were to seek vengeance.

With a particularly wide smile, the Dragon formed her plot.

* * *

**Chapter 27: Proposition**

* * *

She wanted to cry.

Her heart wanted to crack into pieces, and she didn't even know why.

But as soon as the tears started welling up in her eyes, she angrily wiped them away along with the feeling of worthlessness that came with them.

With her head resting between her hands, all she could do was clutch her head and think things through.

'_Is it because of Shalltear? Did I mess up that badly? Is this why he doesn't trust me anymore?'_

Tiamat knew Ainz well enough at this point. She'd always had, even before they got transported into the New World. She had always been rash, impulsive, and ignorant, while Ainz was the complete opposite of her. He was calculating, careful, and always took everything into account, down to the most minute details.

Whenever she had made a careless mistake in the game, he wouldn't get angry. Instead, he would just laugh things off, and they would just start over from the beginning.

Tiamat had always helped him when he needed it; all he ever needed to do was ask, and she would be there as soon as she could. Even if they failed an important quest, he wouldn't get angry or upset over it.

She knew that he had a hard time with their guildmates leaving the game. Maintaining things to be the way they currently were was no easy task, especially if there were only at most five or six members active out of the forty one.

She also knew that Ainz had issues with his confidence. He never thought that he was good enough, a reason that he sincerely believed was the reason why they left the game.

But that was not the case.

Ainz was a great leader.

It's just that people were much more preoccupied with their life in the real world compared to the illusory fun they had in the virtual world.

And there was nothing she could do about that.

No matter how hard she pleaded or how hard she tried to convince them that all Ainz needed were a few words of farewell, not a single person responded to her pleads.

Even then, Ainz bore it all with a quiet patience. But his reaction a few minutes ago let her know that this time she had made a terrible, _terrible_ mistake.

A familiar feeling once again began etching itself into her skin. It seemed that even after she had been transported to another world, she was still as disgusting on the inside.

Her brain felt sluggish, and her mind constantly drifted about like a mist of anxiety. It was as if she didn't have the energy to do anything.

She just wanted to disappear.

'_What am I doing here, feeling all sorry for myself? He's always been like this. It would be ridiculous of me to expect to just suddenly change because I told him to.'_

Tiamat took a deep breath. "I should probably do something other than moping around, _haaaaaaah…_"

Doing something time consuming would take her mind off of the stress and gloom that was plaguing her. It was a method that always worked.

_Always._

Tiamat slapped both of her cheeks with the palms of her hands, bringing herself back to reality before she stood up and exited the room.

As her room was located on the second floor of the mansion, she decided to take her time to stroll over to the kitchen that Sebas had already introduced to her a few hours ago during the tour of the mansion.

It was a fairly spacious room—nowhere near as large as the kitchen in Nazarick of course—with grayish walls that bore signs of the wear of time. It was like an extremely toned down version of the kitchen in the Tomb that she had grown to love.

In fact, she was one of the few who had designed the grand kitchen of Nazarick. It could be said that it was her dream kitchen.

Sadly, she would have to settle for this disappointment of a cookery.

She wanted to avoid Ainz for a couple of days until she could get her thoughts sorted.

Tiamat looked around the mansion's dingy kitchen again; it seemed that the oven and stove were relatively old—a clay kiln in fact—and could prove to be problematic for an amateur chef because having an uncontrollable fire was definitely undesirable.

Thankfully, Tiamat was no amateur.

She strode over to the cupboard and opened the cabinet doors.

Empty.

She opened the next one.

Empty.

She opened the next one, and the next one after that, her movement becoming more erratic as she gradually realized that _every single one of the cupboards _were empty.

Using her keen sense of smell, Tiamat lifted up the hems of her dress and ran towards where Sebas was.

"Sebas!" Tiamat skidded to a stop when she nearly rushed passed the room where Sebas was working.

The steely butler was sitting on a chair, his gray eyes filled with a sharp intensity as he worked on a small stack of paperwork that was laid on top of his table with Solution and Yuri by his side.

"Lady Tiamat," Sebas stood up, greeting her. His action was quickly imitated by the two Pleiades maids, "Is there anything you need from me?"

Tiamat walked up to Sebas and put her hands on his shoulders from the other side of the table. With a sudden burst of strength, she pulled the butler towards her and looked at him with panic written across her features. The two Pleiades sisters looked at the Supreme Being with concern, but the perfectly stoic butler remained unperturbed.

"Sebas, the kitchen—" Tiamat almost yelled.

"Yes, what about the kitchen, My Lady?" Sebas replied in an almost casual manner, surprising her even more.

"It's empty!"

Sebas looked at the Dragoness with steadfast eyes.

"Yes," he confirmed her worst fears, "The kitchen is indeed empty."

"That's impossible!" Tiamat clutched her head, "I can't believe it, what kind of sorcery is this?"

Even the kitchen in Nazarick was always well stocked and filled to the brim thanks to Lupusregina's shopping trips to Carne Village almost every two weeks or so. Because of this, Tiamat never had any problems procuring ingredients she wanted to cook with, and with the addition of the Dryad that Suzu—Ainz had found, growing difficult vegetables had never been easier.

It baffled her that the mansion didn't have the same resources as Nazarick, even though it was bought using Nazarick's money.

"There are no sorcery or tricks to this, My Lady," Sebas reassured her.

"Then when have you guys been eating? What did you eat? Did you even eat at _all_?" her panicked voice grew higher and higher with each word. Just the thought that Sebas and Solution hadn't had a proper meal since they went on their mission hurt her heart.

"You don't have to worry, Lady Tiamat," this time Solution was the one who spoke out, "As a Soggoth, I didn't have to eat a lot, and Lord Ainz, in his infinite kindness, gave Sebas-sama a 『Ring of Sustenance』before we went on this mission."

Tiamat moved her eyes downward and saw the gleam of the golden band that was sparkling outside of Sebas's gloved finger, ostentatiously announcing its unwelcome presence.

At that moment, she had never despised the ring more.

'_I swear, when I go back to Nazarick, everyone will be banned from using that ring.'_

"How many times do I have to tell you? You _need_ to be healthy. That means you have to eat well. Three meals a day is the _minimum_."

Sebas put his gloved hand over his heart and dipped into a deep bow, Yuri and Solution mirroring his actions.

"We apologize, Lady Tiamat. But the money Ainz-sama had given us for this mission isn't enough to cover food expenses along with our other operations. I've discussed this with Solution as well and we both agreed to forgo the food unless it's for the denizens of Nazarick," he said smoothly.

Sebas's words baffled Tiamat, "Not enough money?" she questioned, "How is that possible?"

Every division in Nazarick had funds budgeted for them, and so far, none of them had asked for additional funding. Tiamat had checked each and every budget request with Pandora's Actor, triple-checking to ensure that they were properly separating Nazarick's assets from their acquisitions in the New World.

It would be pathetic of them to charge their children money for services inside their own home.

With that thought in mind, Tiamat and Ainz had pored over documents for hours to make sure they weren't forcing the denizens of the Tomb to pay for a service that was already a part of Nazarick.

Even so, they should still have enough money to support all of Nazarick's operations. Was Sebas and Solution's work in the Kingdom that expensive?

'_I wish Ainz would tell me more about this kind of stuff…' _Tiamat's expression dropped a little before she shook her head, forcing a smile onto her face.

"Never mind, as long as everything else is okay, Ainz and I can handle the food problem."

'_Thinking about that now won't do anyone any good.'_

Sebas's eyes narrowed for a split second before he relaxed again. Surely he didn't see her lapse in concentration?

"We appreciate your concern My Lady, but there is no need for that. We won't be here too long and both of us would much rather eat in Nazarick, is that not right, Solution?"

"Indeed, Sebas-sama," Solution nodded in agreement before turning her head to the side and muttering, "Although there's not that much fresh food around…"

Tiamat's ears burned. She was sure she used the freshest ingredients in everything she made...or maybe she messed up in that too?

Sebas saw this and gave Solution a sharp look. The Slime Maid jolted and her eyes widened in horror as she realized what the Head Butler was implying.

"I-I am deeply sorry, My Lady! I meant no offense to your cooking!" Solution bent her body in a perfect ninety-degree angle.

"It's alright Solution," Tiamat walked over to the maid and gently lifted her head up, "I'm not perfect and neither is my cooking. If there's somewhere I can improve, then please tell me."

Solution's eyes shifted from side to side in agitation, "My Lady—"

"Forgive us for the lack of clarity, My Lady. Solution was merely referring to her more...particular tastes."

Tiamat blankly stared at the unbothered Butler and the fidgeting Slime Maid. "Particular?"

Sebas just looked at her with his typical iron-hard expression.

"Ohhhhhhhh! _That _kind of particular!" Tiamat's eyes finally lit up in realization. "Uh…so you mean a person right? Did you eat someone recently, Solution?"

Sebas quickly responded, "My Lady, before Shalltear-sama's mind control, there was a coach driver who tried to lure us into an ambush," Sebas's normally stoic eyes darkened for an instant, "However, we were able to defeat all of them, and Solution ate the offending excuse of a man."

"He was offensive to my taste buds too…" Solution grumpily muttered under her breath, jolting as Sebas shot a sharp look in her direction.

'_Huh, I'm not as bothered by that as I thought I would. Well, if it's someone who dared to attack them for no good reason, then it should be fine right?'_ Tiamat internally mused.

"I'll talk to Ainz and see what I can do, Solution. Don't apologize for your eating necessities. We all have to eat to survive, right?" Tiamat tilted her head with a bright smile adorning her features.

"I do not deserve such kindness, My Lady," Solution, completely overwhelmed with emotion, knelt down before Tiamat—her _Goddess_—as she wept giant tears that returned to her body before they could touch the ground. Truly, for Lady Tiamat to care about something as unimportant as her eating necessities…

"A-Ah, it's not that big of a deal Solution, I can assure you that I am not offended, so please get up…" Tiamat wrung her hands as she helplessly watched the prone Maid. "Yuri…"

"Yes, My Lady," The Eldest Pleiades walked over and gently took Solution by the arm. "Solution, get up. You're one of the Pleiades Maids that serves the Supreme Being. Act in accordance to the title you've been gifted," Yuri sternly admonished her younger sister.

Solution slowly stood up—smoothing the creases of her dress that were a bit folded at the seams because of her sudden actions—as she turned back to the usual Solution Epsilon that Tiamat was familiar with.

However, Yuri was far from finished, "Moreover, Lady Tiamat never lies. If she said that she is not offended, then she isn't. Isn't that right My Lady?"

Tiamat huffed, "Of course! It will take a lot more than that to offend me!"

"Your kindness is very much appreciated, My Lady," Solution replied with a graceful bow.

'_Speaking of which, what would actually trigger me…?'_

Without thinking, she mumbled out loud the answer to her own question, "The empty kitchen though…that's an example of something that would offend me actually…"

"There's nothing we can do, Lady Tiamat," Sebas answered with his usual stoic face, "Tonight's dinner will have to be a simple sleep."

Then Yuri added, "I agree with you, Sebas-sama; it would indeed save some money for the more critical parts of the mission."

"No, wait! A dragon's gotta eat too you know!" Tiamat objected.

"There's nothing we can do at this point," Sebas replied with a hint of an apology in his voice, "Please hold on until tomorrow's breakfast, My Lady. I'll try contacting Sous-Chef tonight to send us some ingredients for the next morning."

"But… But…" Tiamat stuttered, "We haven't eaten dinner _today._"

"My Lady," Sebas remained steadfast, "We have no funds to spare for food right now. Ainz-sama himself was the one who set our budget to be as efficient as possible."

'_Arrrrrgh, that cheapskate…'_

Tiamat sighed as she tried to think of an argument against Sebas's cold hard logic. The stoic butler would not accept any suggestion that would deplete Nazarick's finances.

Oh, how she desperately wanted to curse Touch Me for making such an unagreeable butler.

"I guess there's nothing we can do, My Lady. Anyways, we'll be able to go back home soon," Yuri tried to cheer up the gluttonous goddess.

Tiamat quieted down, her eyes stuck to her feet. She was absolutely crestfallen at the thought of having no dinner before bed.

Both of the Pleiades sisters smiled at one another. Even Sebas nodded in agreement. It seemed that their Lady wouldn't throw a tantrum. For now at least.

Tiamat grumbled.

'_What am I supposed to do without food? I __**can't **__sleep without dinner! Wait, there's that one thing I wanted to do to make money…'_

Sebas and the two Pleiades sisters stared at the Dragoness as she paced back and forth around the room.

"My Lady, is there something wrong?" Solution worriedly took an uncertain step forward.

"Huh? Oh, I was just thinking of something," Tiamat blinked as she was broken out of her musings, "Speaking of which, Yuri, please call Pandora's Actor over here. There are some important things I want to discuss," conviction burned in Tiamat's eyes as she ordered the eldest of the Pleiades maids.

"May I ask what for, My Lady?"

With a smile on her face, she answered, "I'm going to make Nazarick rich again."

～('▽^人)

"_Ach, nee?!" _Pandora's Actor gripped his smooth face as his always open mouth grew even wider than usual.

[I don't quite understand what that means, but yes, Lady Tiamat needs you here to discuss something important.] The voice of Yuri Alpha filtered through『Message』and into the shapeshifter's mind.

"Ich glaub mich knutscht ein Elch! Lady Tiamat needs me to meet her _outside _of the Treasury?!" the egghead bent backward until his head nearly touched the ground.

Yuri sighed, [Yes, that's what I just said, Pandora's Actor. Please don't keep her waiting. If that's all, then come as soon as possible.]

"Warte! Should I notify Mein Vater?" Pandora's Actor hurriedly replied, sensing that the Dullahan maid was about to cut off the connection.

[Do you mean Ainz-sama? I don't believe that this situation is important enough to require Ainz-sama's attention.]

"Do not fret, Fraulein!" the image of a winged black-haired woman demanding him to hand over his clothes flitted through his head for a brief moment before he shook his head clear of the thought, "I will make my way there now!"

The egghead dramatically bowed in the empty Treasury.

He awkwardly coughed, "Verdammt… No one is even here…"

His cough reverberated in the vast vault, silence the only response to the Treasurer's shame.

"Ahem! I suppose I should get going then," Pandora's Actor dramatically tipped the visor of his cap forward before opening up a『Message』channel.

[Yes?] the clear voice of a young girl rang inside his head.

[Frau Aureole! I am in dire need of your assistance!] Pandora's Actor began to wildly gesticulate in the lonely confines of the Treasury.

[To open a portal? Alright, just stand there and wait a moment.]

And indeed, a moment later, a whorling rift ripped through the fabric of reality right before Pandora's Actor.

[Danke!] With that, the egghead closed the call and leapt through the portal.

On the other side of the portal, he saw a room that he had never seen before. Cream colored wallpapers, red carpet, and simple pieces of furniture; the room's quality was definitely leagues lower than Nazarick's. He assumed that he had been transported outside of Nazarick.

At the edge of the room, there were two sofas the color of the carpet, but more importantly, his eyes immediately shot to the familiar crimson hair flowing down one of the sofas.

It was someone he had not seen in a long time.

Due to the dimness of the room, he could only see her silhouette sitting down while holding what seemed to be the vague outline of what appeared to be a bunch of papers. Despite being unable to clearly view the Supreme Being, the doppelganger felt an intense feeling of relief fill him to the brim. He never realized how much her absence had affected him—not just him, but the other Floor Guardians as well—and how Nazarick was much less lively without her there.

But even if the Dragoness was not there, the memory of her remained, making the loneliness of the Treasury all the harder to bear. At the very least he had the books from the Library to accompany him in the moments where he felt the most alone. Even more important, he knew that she cared about them and would come running back if they ever needed her.

Now that the Supreme Being was in front of him, the feelings he had hidden deep inside him were brought back to the surface. When one of Kyouhukou's children told him that Lady Tiamat had been helping his Vater with important documents, Pandora's Actor knew that the person in front of him had truly become the Matriarch of Nazarick.

"Meine Dame," he softly said as he bowed.

He lifted his head as soon as Lady Tiamat's head whipped up and saw him standing there. He slowly broke out into a wide smile. Her smile was one of a deep-inborne happiness that lit up her eyes and spread its warmth into every part of him.

"Pandora's Actor!" she stood up, dropping all her papers to the floor. He raised his hand in a futile attempt to dissuade her from standing and dropping all of the papers to the floor. Despite his best efforts, the stacks of paper still flopped down on the floor unattended.

His eyes shifted back to the Supreme Being just in time to see the dragoness running towards him, her arms outstretched. She rammed into him as she gave him a huge hug, her arms wrapped around his back.

She was so warm and bright that the doppelganger couldn't help but to snuggle into her as he wrapped his arms around her to balance his footing when she jumped on him.

"I missed you so much!" her arms squeezed a fraction tighter, and Pandora's Actor breathed out in contentment.

"We've missed you too, Meine Dame…" Pandora's Actor admitted on behalf of the Floor Guardians, remembering what the dark haired Overseer had—in a rare moment of vulnerability—mentioned to him when she returned his clothing.

When the Supreme Being let go, a faint chill immediately tinged his body, as he reluctantly retracted his hands. He was starting to understand what young Mare had said before; her hugs could never be long enough.

Tiamat smiled at him, filled with wonder when she heard that the lonely Treasurer missed her too, "Something unexpected came up, but I'll return home after my business in the Kingdom is finished," she pulled on the doppelganger's long hand, "Come, come! We have so many things to talk about."

And so he obeyed, taking the seat opposite to her. Before the Dragoness sat down, she crouched down to pick the fallen papers off the carpeted floor and waved for Pandora's Actor to sit down as he stood up in an attempt to help.

"It's alright, I can do this on my own," Tiamat continued to motion for him to stay in his seat, picking up the pieces of paper and stacking them neatly into a pile before finally sitting on the sofa, "How are things in Nazarick?"

"As I said, everyone misses you, Mein Dame."

"Everyone?"

"Ja!" his smooth head vigorously shook up and down.

"I really want to go back home," Tiamat huffed, her chest letting out a massive heave, "I miss cooking for the Floor Guardians as well…"

"You can't cook here, Mein Dame?"

"Sadly," another sigh escaped her lungs as her soul reached another dimension of disappointment, "We don't have money to do any cooking here. The kitchen doesn't even have any utensils, for God's sake, and if we have to buy everything from the stove to the dishes, then we're going to have to spend a large sum of money from Nazarick. I don't want to do that, and that's why I called you here."

"Me?" he felt like smiling a little at the revelation.

Even though his mouth was stuck in a perpetually open "O", he felt like he could stretch his lips into a smile; an expression that would look absolutely comical if it were at all possible. For a few moments, he was almost sure that his expression mirrored that of young Mare.

"Yup! I need your help with something," Tiamat enthusiastically started, looking at the paper on top of the stack, "I think we need a source of constant cash that will allow income to flow into Nazarick without me and Ainz having to go out to work all the time. With that being said," she lifted her amethyst eyes to look at him, "How is Nazarick's financial situation right now?"

Pandora's Actor stood up—fist placed over his chest—as he saluted. A wave of excitement surged up with power almost equal to that of the Forty-One Supreme Beings as he was engulfed in a tsunami of enthusiasm and eagerness. Emotions that he did not try to hide.

"I see, Meiiiiiiiine Dame! I am bursting with energy every day, and I am very happy that you have asked me to come give you a short briefing! To think that one of the Supreme Beings themselves would personally ask me for my assistance!"

"Um…P-Pandora's—"

"Indeed it is so. For the deeds that the Supreme Beings have etched into history, so mighty and potent are they that surely the worlds would tremble at the mere mention of them! Supreme Beings that can make the impossible possible or even change the face of the entire world!"

"Thank you, Pandora's Actor!" Lady Tiamat lightly clapped at the egghead's impromptu speech.

"Of course, Mein Dame!" he sang in a shrill voice, "The wonder that is the organizational system of Nazarick has drastically improved, and as you have asked, I have divided our gold stocks into two separate piles, and now the mountain of gold from this world has been rising slowly but surely!"

"That's good, what else?"

"The denizens of Nazarick have begun purchasing products from the outside with the money that you and Ainz-sama have been graciously giving them, Meine Dame! In the acquisition of these foreign goods, Fraulein Lupusregina and Solution, as well as Head Butler Sebas have been doing _Seh Gut_!"

"That's also good," Tiamat nodded, "Then, Pandora's Actor please lend me some money."

"With the rise of the money—_eh?_"

"Can you lend me some money?"

Tiamat could not see the shock register on his face. However, it did remind her of a certain electric mouse…

'_Meine Dame braucht Geld? __Was für eine Krise könnte es sein?'_

"For what, Mein Dame?" his tone instantaneously turned serious.

Cold sweat was starting to form on Tiamat's back, "I-Investment…?"

"How much would you need?" his voice dropped to a low baritone, and Tiamat felt as if she was in front of a panel of those serious bank employees who she had to coax a loan out of.

His weighty response only crispened up her resolve to convince him that she needed this loan. She looked at him straight in the eye, "I need three hundred gold coins."

"Three hundred?"

"Yes. According to the report Albedo had given me, three hundred gold coins wouldn't take too much out of Nazarick's financial reserve," Tiamat confidently stated.

"That may be so, Meine Dame, but Ainz-sama has made clear his desire to have a large source of gold to fall back on as security. Furthermore, Herr Sebas and Fraulein Solution have their own mission to carry out, and an expensive one at that, I might add," the grave Treasurer reminded her.

"Well…" Tiamat hummed, "We'll be able to make that money back though, right?"

"Can you guarantee that, Meine Dame? Will you be able to make a profit from whatever you're planning?" Pandora's Actor lowered his head dramatically as he tipped his visor downward.

"Of course, that's why I called you here to make sure whether the business is going to work or not," she smiled at him. He could see that her kind eyes were filled with warmth and—more importantly—trust.

Pandora's Actor was shocked. He didn't expect to hear that response from the Supreme Being at all.

He was ready to give her as much money as she needed. Afterall, Lady Tiamat was a Supreme Being. What a Supreme Being wanted, a Supreme Being got.

But the fact that she had asked for his opinion before she proceeded with what she wanted to do caused his body to tremble; his featureless face on the brink of tears. He felt strange because he felt the vibe of inward weeping.

Just for a bit.

He had always been capable of expressing only the emotions he wanted others to see. It was his nature as a doppelganger afterall. Furthermore, his job as the exalted Treasurer of Nazarick required him to have the bearing of one with absolute confidence and control.

"I'm sure that whatever endeavor you have in mind will prosper, Meine Dame," he stated as he suddenly stood up while dramatically putting one hand over his chest and lifting the other high towards the ceiling, hiding the fact that he was a bit teary that the Supreme Being trusted him that much.

"Well, since you are the Treasurer of Nazarick, I'm sure you know more about this stuff than I do. Could you help me out with it?" Tiamat tilted her body forward a bit as her eyes twinkled in eagerness.

"Natürlich! Wait, what do you want me to help you with, Meine Dame?" Pandora's Actor sat down as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

'_Du meine Güte, how could I act so outrageously when I don't even know what the Supreme Being wants…?'_

"Oh! Can't believe I forgot to tell you about that… " Tiamat muttered as her hand disappeared under her robes as she dug around in her inventory. "Ah, here it is. Let's see…"

She pulled out a handful of crinkled papers and began smoothing them out, scanning the tattered notes as she did so.

'_Meine Gott…' _Pandora's Actor inwardly cringed at the sight of the unkempt papers before shaking his head. '_No, this must be how the Supreme Beings operate.'_

"Here you go!" the Supreme Being's cheerful shout snapped him back to reality. "These papers here," she pointed at the first few pages in the small pile, "These are the things that needed to be done in order for the business to run properly."

'_What business?!' _the egghead's mind spun wildly in confusion.

Pandora's Actor grabbed a sheet of paper from the top of the pile, quickly analyzing it before setting it down and reaching for the next piece.

Tiamat peered at Pandora's Actor's vacant eyes. Since he had no pupils, it was very hard to see which part of the document he was scanning, but before she knew it, the doppelganger was already blitzing through the bottom of the stack.

'_As expected of Ainz's creation, the Treasurer of Nazarick…'_

Pandora's Actor afterall, was a very capable Floor Guardian. Aside from guarding the inner sanctums of the Treasury, he could even morph into any of their old guildmates.

Even though Tiamat was the one who formulated the idea of making a bank, the one who had actually implemented it was Pandora's Actor. Without him keeping track of every single coin from YGGDRASIL or the New World, Nazarick would've already been financially ruined.

Tiamat drank the last drops from her fifth cup of tea for the day. She carefully put the cup down on the saucer before pouring herself another cup filled to the brim with tea and infused with caffeine. Tiamat patiently waited for the doppelganger in front of her to finish his first cup while slowly appreciating the scent emanating from her own drink.

After some time, Pandora's Actor had finally finished deciphering all of the scribbles Tiamat had jotted down. The contents of the document ranged from ideas on the businesses she wanted to make, how she could achieve it, and how it could be profitable.

As they said, you needed to be able to make quick returns with the commodities that were available.

Once Pandora's Actor put the paper back down on the table, Tiamat leaned in excitedly, her eyes sparkling in anticipation.

"Well? How is it? Some of the ideas are a bit rough, but I'm sure we can figure it out!" the Dragoness's body tilting more and more forward with each word.

If she were to be honest with herself, she was dreading Pandora's Actor's input. Her legs jittered uncontrollably, her brain flooded with nervousness. She felt the undulating waves of panic shifting in anxiousness for the Treasurer's next words.

They would wane if he accepted the proposal.

They would wax if he didn't. She let her thoughts swirl into a vortex of stupidity, her thoughts eating their own tail.

"Meine Dame," Pandora's Actor began.

Hearing such a low and serious tone come from the normally light-hearted Treasurer made her unconsciously straighten her back. Tiamat immediately placed her cup down on the saucer that was resting on her other hand on top of her lap, "Y-Yes—!"

Her stomach shifted uneasily, and she noticed that her hand was trembling, the cup in her grip clattering a little bit against the saucer. Tiamat took a deep breath as she steadied her grasp on the cup properly.

"What do you think Pandora's Actor?" she asked in return, "Is it possible? Or should we just scrap the entire idea—"

"Meine Dame!" Pandora's Actor suddenly stood up from the sofa, putting one hand over his heart and lifting the other to the skies as if he was the lead singer in an opera, "_Großartig_! As expected of the Supreme Beings, _Unglaublich_! The fact that you are able to think of something that would be so profitable to Nazarick…" the Treasurer lowered his head, one arm crossed over his chest as the other tilted his visor-cap downwards, "Your servant is awed!"

Tiamat felt her cheeks burning like an open fire at the high praise Pandora's Actor had given her. His praises came forth without end, playing like a track set on repeat, looping back to what he said in the beginning with seamless ease.

Yet here she was, sitting down on the sofa with all her insecurities written across her face for all to see. Before she had called the Treasurer over, her anxiety had been running in a circle like a cat that drank from the wrong river. But apparently, Pandora's Actor liked her proposal.

She attempted to suppress a wide grin and miserably failed. Tiamat could tell that Pandora's Actor genuinely liked the ideas she had scribbled down. His reactions and praises were the same when he had first eaten the cheesecake she had baked for him.

"Your proposals are truly amazing Meine Dame! _Ich bin super_ _inspiriert_! As I should have expected from Vater's Ehef—_Freundin_!" Pandora's Actor continued spouting praises.

Tiamat looked on at the doppelganger flailing around with his spindly arms as he paced back and forth in the small enclosed room, excited over the idea that she had presented. Without her realizing, a warm smile had crept up her face just as Pandora's Actor began skipping around the room.

'_Oh Ainz…'_

"Then shall we make it happen?" she asked softly, basking in the Treasurer's excitement.

"_Wenn es meines Gottes Wille!_"

～('▽^人)

Today was just like any other day.

It was a beautiful day outside. The seagulls were squawking, white puffy clouds drifting by, all under a bright blue sky.

On the other hand, Barbossa felt miserable.

He had been knocked out the other night. Barbossa stretched his arms out with a groan as he cursed himself for downing so much alcohol. The hot and heavy burn of the alcohol had wiped away the events that had transpired last night.

By the time he could finally open his encrusted eyes, all he could make out was his usual great cabin, a place where only the captain of the ship could occupy. His room spanned the width of the stern and had large windows. He usually loved the view the expanded glass panel afforded him, but now?

Now, all he wanted to do was to cover that annoying sunlight with a thick cloth.

The din of waves crashing against nearby rocks only added to his misery as his brain pounded in protest against his skull.

The scent of saltwater traveled up his nostrils—casting a spell-like hypnotic trance on him—giving him a slight reprieve from the agony and pain of his hangover.

Only the ocean could make him sigh in such a way.

With a grunt, Barbossa got off his bed and threw on a shirt that had been laying on the ground, but just as he was struggling with lining up the buttons of his shirt, he heard a piercing shriek outside of his ship accompanied by the sound of people screaming and running away from something.

As soon as he heard that, a pang of panic hit him and his bowels suddenly churned. An uncomfortable tightness in his chest urging him to run, to escape, to hide.

He had been working in this line of business for so long that his brain instinctively understood which scenarios were fightable and which he should run like hell from.

This was one of the run-like-hell scenarios.

The panic grew stronger as his mind gave in to the fear of the unknown.

He slapped himself, leaving a bright red mark on his cheek.

'_Get a hold of yourself, man! You're the captain.'_

Even still, his mind was filled with questions. What were those people shrieking to? What did they see? What happened? Why were they running?

Was it a sea monster that he had faced off before? Or was it a giant tsunami that was about to wash everyone away?

A loud high pitched scream broke him out of his thoughts.

Frantically, he twisted the knob to his cabin door and flung it open with a loud thud. He quickly jumped out of the room and onto the deck, shaking and terrified. His shirt was only half unbuttoned and half tucked in.

As soon as he went out onto the deck, he noticed that a large shadow was looming over him— completely blocking out the morning sun that would usually be peaking out from the east— accompanied by the deafening sound of wind.

Even before he could look behind him, he could see that the expressions of the people who were watching from the port were filled with fear and awe.

Slowly and cautiously, he turned around, his brain stuttering for a moment as it tried to comprehend with what his eyes were seeing. It was as if every part of him went on pause while his thoughts tried to catch up.

Barbossa stood there motionless, his knees buckling as his legs lost all strength. He fell to his butt, the impact knocking every wisp of air from his lungs as he sat there on his deck struggling to inhale, to exhale, to _comprehend_.

A dragon was behind him,

A white dragon, the same size—or probably even bigger than his ship—was looming over him, it's titanic body blocking out the very sun itself.

But that wasn't even the most surprising part.

The woman he had met once in his life, that unforgettable woman was sitting on top of the dragon's head, waving at him.

"Captain Barbossa!" she shouted out excitedly over the ocean wind. That voice, that hair, those eyes, he knew it was her.

"Y-You...D-Dragon—"

"Remember me Captain?" she yelled once again.

He could only nod weakly.

"I have a proposal in mind, do you want to hear it?" she screamed out over the dragon's flapping once more.

～('▽^人)

Paolo's Emporium.

A small but elegant shop in the middle of E-Rantel, managed by the one and only—the fashionista and the master tailor—Paolo.

From the first stitches to the last button, Paolo was involved in every single dress and piece of clothing that the Emporium produced. It took decades of experience in tailoring to create custom clothes that fit every client.

Paolo was the only tailor in E-Rantel who could guarantee a truly unforgettable experience upon donning one of his creations.

He remembered what his master said: _measure twice, cut once_. Inspired by this philosophy of precision and economy, he took pride in offering his customers dresses and shirts of superior quality at unbeatable prices.

Everyone—and he meant everyone—who came into his emporium would come out satisfied.

Only two people throughout his entire career had refused his hand made dresses.

The very first person was the Saint of E-Rantel herself, Hannah Annafelowz.

After her heroic feat of saving the entirety of E-Rantel, Paolo offered to custom-tailor a dress to replace her tattered clothing stained with blood fresh from the battlefield. He was ready to spare no expense in creating a dress for the savior of his hometown. Even if she asked for something made out of spider silk, he would gladly comply. Afterall, she had saved him, his workers, and his family.

He could always make more dresses even if he went bankrupt. As long as he had his two hands, he knew for sure he wouldn't—_couldn't—_quit.

But instead of a dress for her, she asked for children sized clothing. A red dress and a green suit.

The second person to refuse one of his finely crafted ensembles, was the bespectacled beauty that was currently standing right in front of him.

"You don't want any of the dresses, _Madame_?" he asked with raised eyebrows, measuring tape hung around his neck as he fine-tuned one of the high profile client's dresses.

"No," the bespectacled beauty firmly refused. She had even confused his staff because she had urged them to get Paolo instead of browsing the store as most customers usually did.

"Then may Paolo ask why you are here?"

She fixed her glasses upwards. The glare from her glasses obscured her eyes, making it impossible for Paolo to gauge her mood. The eyes were the windows to the soul after all.

"I am here on behalf of my master, Hannah Annafelowz," the raven-haired maid confidently stated, her firm yet gentle eyes leaving no room for disagreement.

Paolo's breath caught in his throat.

He recalled what he had thought of previously and excitedly replied, eyes sparkling, "My goodness! Does she want a dress from me afterall?"

"No," the maid shook her head once more. Paolo sighed, his shoulders a bit lower than before.

"Then?"

The woman shifted, and Paolo saw that she was carrying a heavy narrow trunk that was equipped with an unnaturally smooth handle. A rigid compartment decorated with the finest brown leather he had ever seen: polished, and clean cut. A design he wasn't familiar with.

He noted the shape and size of the bag in earnest before the bespectacled beauty lifted it up and unlocked it.

Then, his eyes shifted to the contents of the elegant box.

His jaw dropped to the floor.

Inside of it were countless spools of reeled silk—lustrous silk that even he knew was first-class from just a glance—that shone like pale moonlight in the well-lit emporium.

"T-This… this is… spider silk?" Paolo asked in a small voice, his usually steady hands quivering as they hovered over the priceless material, not quite daring to touch the spools.

Spider silk was notoriously difficult to harvest, due to small spiders not being able to produce enough for a full-blown ensemble, and large spiders proving a large risk to one's well being.

"Indeed," the black-haired maid curtly replied before continuing, "La—Hannah-sama has a proposition for you. A very, _very_, advantageous proposition."

Paolo gulped.

"Then we will talk in my office. What's your name, Madame, if I might ask?"

Yuri smiled a gentle smile at the man. Before she had entered the store, she was determined that she would do whatever she could to fulfill the Supreme Being's wishes.

And if the Supreme Being wanted this man to be a part of her plans, then so be it.

～('▽^人)

It had been three days since Tiamat had arrived in the Capital City. At the moment, she was laying on the large bed that Sebas had provided for her in the master's bedroom, her lifeless eyes blankly staring at the slightly worn down white ceiling.

She hadn't returned to Nazarick yet. Even though she wanted to hug the twins, chat with Albedo, watch Shalltear mess with the twins, spar with Cocytus, maybe even have tea with Demiurge while nodding along to his new discoveries regarding interrogation methodology: all while playing with her baby dragons.

But she couldn't do any of that.

Firstly, she had matters that needed to be addressed in the Capital City. The new business that she had just been set afoot, and if everything went well, it could very well become a new stream of income for Nazarick.

A new business was especially fragile and required a lot of attention. Even though she had consulted with Pandora's Actor—the genius in Nazarick when it came to money—and even if he had told her that everything would go fine, she couldn't help but to feel worried.

'_Fine...what a weird word,'_ she pondered, her eyes glazing over as she let out a sigh.

Tiamat focused on the copper chandelier hanging from the ceiling, her sharp eyes taking in its elegant form and dull shine. The cream colored plaster on the walls were like dunes of sand washed over with streaks of black, blemishes that emphasized the age of the building. If Sebas and Solution hadn't bought out the building, the chandelier would probably have eventually turned green and the paint worn out, but as now, she couldn't help but think that it was beautiful.

But even a worldly beauty such as the chateau couldn't steer her mind away from her stressful thoughts.

"Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic, and Emotional. F.I.N.E," she spelled out loud, "Such a weird word."

Instantly, her mind wandered to a fairly popular saying back in the day. _They used to say you're fine but you're not really fine._ A statement that she felt held a bit of truth despite its overuse.

Her mind continuously wandered to her dear friend and guild leader who kept shutting her out of his problems.

'_Ainz, you meanie… I'll get you back for this!'_

Tiamat turned over on the bed, putting a pillow under her neck as she rolled onto her side.

'_Still… I wish he didn't teleport away so suddenly like that,' _she began biting her thumb as her stress levels mounted.

But soon enough, her stomach rumbled and she squirmed around on top of the old bed to silence the rumbling. She quickly glanced at the old grandfather clock in the room, noticing that it was only two more minutes until lunch.

'_Hurry uuuuup…' _Tiamat inwardly groaned as she flipped herself over to her other side.

Her eyes stared out the window, the verdant green of the courtyard reminding her of a vegetable sandwich. Without her realizing, she had already begun salivating at just the thought of even something as pitiful as a vegetable sandwich.

The clock ticked again, announcing the passing of yet another minute. Tiamat attentively stared as the second hand slowly completed its route around the circle, seemingly slowing down the closer it got to reaching the blessed '12'.

Her stomach growled noisily, and she had to swallow her pool of saliva.

Right as she did, Yuri knocked on the door, catching Tiamat off guard as the Dragoness choked on her own saliva. The Dragoness coughed as she blearily blinked her eyes, sleepy ears straining to catch Yuri's muffled voice behind the wooden door.

"My Lady, bla bla bla. Paolo bla bla bla. Bla bla bla. _Lunch_."

The last word seemed important so Tiamat raised her head.

"Lunch?"

"So you _can_ clearly hear me, My Lady. I was worried that something had happened," Yuri opened the door and walked into the room before closing it again. Tiamat rubbed her eyes, slowly realizing that it was just a ruse to get her attention.

Lunch. Tiamat began to think about the idea a bit more.

She could make one super easily. The only issue that peeved her would be that she would have to cook something that required no chopping, peeling, or mixing and could completely fill her stomach to the brim. But Yuri was talking once again.

"Bla bla bla bla, bla bla bla. Bla bla negotiation, bla bla bla," the voice of the eldest Pleiades tapered off into a drone as the Dragoness dozed off again.

Yuri sighed as she pushed up her glasses. The Dullahan maid stared at her red-haired Lady with a wry smile before loudly clapping her hands together.

"Wha—? Lunch time right?" Tiamat jolted upright from the sudden sound, wiping the drool from her chin as she blinked the sleep from her eyes.

The ever present hunger gnawed at her as she realized—later than she should have—that food was her constant obsession. Recently, she had been looking at animals and plants and wondering if they were edible.

There were no animals in _that _world, and the humans who had money coerced those who didn't to labor while hungry for even the smallest amount of shitty food. The number of babies and young children who went hungry and were malnourished was uncountable.

The rich wouldn't care if the poor starved or died from disease and war, since for them, it was simply a way to get rid of the unwanted population.

Living in a world where enough food was produced, preventing hunger, death, and disease felt like an unreal paradise to her.

Sadly, Yuri broke her out of her boredom induced gratitude.

"As Sebas-sama had previously stated, there is no food available because of monetary reasons."

Tiamat fell back onto her bed in despair.

"My Lady?"

"...gry."

"Excuse me My Lady, can you repeat that?"

"...ngry," the dragoness mumbled once again.

"Are you...angry?"

"Hungry…"

"Then please come back to Nazarick. My sisters miss your cooking as well, My Lady."

"Can't."

"Why not?"

"Busy."

Yuri's chest slightly heaved up in a sigh. "My Lady, I cannot help you if you refuse to tell me what's bothering you."

"Haveta start a business or something," Tiamat's muffled voice rose up from the pillow.

"The one you called Pandora's Actor-sama down here for?"

"Yeah," Tiamat put down the pillow she was hugging to her face, "That one."

"Well," Yuri glanced up at the ceiling. This worn out building was no place for a Supreme Being to reside. "You do not _have _to do it. Right, My Lady?"

"_Yeeaaaaah_, but then Nazarick wouldn't earn as much money…" the Dragoness let out a groan as she covered her face with the hand she wasn't lying down on.

"My Lady," Yuri let out a gentle, motherly smile, "If this business is going to make you unhappy—and I'm certain that I'm speaking on all of Nazarick's behalf when I say this—then don't do it. Your happiness is far more important than some measly gold coins."

Tiamat stared at the maid, '_She really is like Yamaiko-san…' _a pang of angst hit her as old memories resurfaced.

"I see," Tiamat got up from her bed and pulled Yuri into a tight hug, "Thank you for feeling that way about me, Yuri."

"I-It's no problem at all, My Lady," Yuri patted the Supreme Being on the back, as her stiffness gradually melted away.

"Truly and honestly, thank you," Tiamat buried her face into Yuri's shoulder, "I really needed to hear that. T-Thank you, Yuri…"

Yuri pulled away in concern, holding the Supreme Being by her shoulders. "My Lady, is everything alright?"

"Y-yeah, I'm just feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment. There's just so much going on you know?" Tiamat sniffled and wiped her eyes with her palms. "But I just gotta believe that everything is going to be alright."

"Have hope, My Lady, you have all of Nazarick at your back," Yuri let go of the Supreme Being's shoulders and smiled. "Please tell us if you need any help. That is our greatest desire after all—to help you and Ainz-sama."

"I'll keep that in mind," Tiamat formed a watery smile, "But for now, I guess I should find something to do… "

Yuri crossed one arm over her chest and rested her other arm on it as she touched her cheek, "How about visiting other stores for reference, My Lady?"

"You mean like scouting?" Tiamat blinked the rest of her tears away, "I was planning on doing that actually."

"Maybe an outing would be a better term, My Lady. Afterall, it's been a while since you've left Sebas-sama and Solution's mansion."

Tiamat looked past the window, taking in the weather and foliage. It felt like she was living in an old painting sometimes, the subtlest shift in light creating a dynamic difference for her eyes. Each leaf had a glossy shine as pretty as any gem she had seen before, and before the warm shade of sunset, every color came into focus under the perfect orange sky.

The weather had been warm the past few days, the clouds a constant companion to the sun as they continued transversing on relaxing breezes. A perfect day to go out.

'_That's right, I need to appreciate this world more…' _Tiamat mused, her mind drifting to a distant scorching land filled with sand, where the sun had ideas of its own as it relished in the destruction of life. Where everything was too hot to touch, and everyone too dulled by reality to worry about the problems they had created.

"That's a great idea, Yuri," Tiamat smiled at the eldest of the Pleiades, whose shoulders relaxed in relief as she saw the cheer on her Lady's face, "Would you help me pick out something to walk around in?"

Yuri couldn't stop a wide smile from growing on her face as every fiber of her being vibrated with anticipation and excitement._ 'What a joy to serve such a wonderful Supreme Being,'_ she thought with elation.

"It would be my pleasure, My Lady," Yuri bowed, "By the way My Lady, did you bring any clothing with you?"

Tiamat sheepishly scratched the back of her head

"Uhhhhhhh…"

～('▽^人)

In the end, it turned out that Paolo had gifted Yuri with some dresses as business gifts after they had concluded negotiations. This was a fortunate occurrence seeing as Tiamat had forgotten to bring any spare clothing of her own.

'_Speaking of which…' _Tiamat sniffed at her red Hanfu dress. '_How is this still clean?'_

When she had purchased the cosmetic item—it could hardly be classified as equipment due to its prodigiously low data capacity—she wasn't aware that it had the capability to self-repair and self-clean. This universal aspect of cosmetic items was something she had learned soon after her first fight with it.

The already hated developers would have received much more hate if they made it so that cosmetic outfits had to be repaired. That was probably why they included the ability to self-repair. Not like it mattered much anyway; the outfits had no use in combat.

'_Huh, didn't notice that particular part had transferred over too… Wasn't it perfectly okay after the fight with Shalltear too? Can't believe I didn't notice that… '_

As Tiamat pondered the nature of her main, ubiquitous piece of clothing, Yuri shook a large, fluffy green dress before her.

"My Lady? Would this one be alright?" the orange light of dusk glinted off the maid's glasses as she held the dress up before her.

"Huh? Yeah, that one's fine," Tiamat absentmindedly replied, still contemplating the essence of her outfit.

'_What if I found some guy with the ability to give my baby more stats? Then it would be so much more useful than just look pretty... Although there's nothing wrong with that of course… Wait! Would that mean I wouldn't be able to equip it anymore because of my racial restrictions? That would be pretty awful… I should definitely test it firs—'_

"My Lady! We should get you dressed now, since this," Yuri laid the dress on the bed as she heaved the intricate trunk that she had brought into the room with her onto the bed. "Might take a little bit of time."

"Oh," Tiamat had a flashback to back when she was at the palace, her body unconsciously shivering at the memory. She knew she had to dress well to meet with the King, but honestly? She thought her adventurer clothing was good enough for that.

But nope.

The memories of the maids at the palace who had appeared before her and stripped her naked without a care in the world haunted her mind.

'_Yeah, I'm not staying overnight at the palace again.'_

At least she had a friend who had accompanied her there.

"Speaking of which, Yuri," Tiamat suddenly stood up as Yuri was preparing to help her dress. "Where is Shroud?" she asked.

"Shroud?" Yuri asked, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. Her brain whirred as it frantically tried to remember any staff in Nazarick with that name and came up with nothing.

"The eight-edged assassin who accompanied me yesterday."

Yuri's glasses glinted, "I didn't know you named him, My Lady."

Tiamat flinched, "Is that a bad thing?"

Yuri smoothed out the green dress, and Tiamat's womanly side of her couldn't help being drawn to it. From the hue of the dress down to the pattern of the embroidery, everything made a statement. The dress was indeed woven together by a master who knew his craft.

Although the fabric could have been refined better, she knew this was far more than what she could afford on Earth. The soft golden embroidery shimmered among the forest green tone of the dress, creating a beautiful image of craftsmanship.

Sadly, she despised dresses like this one.

As Tiamat mulled over her hate for overly complicated dresses that included four or up to even five layers of clothing, Yuri spoke up again.

"On the contrary, My Lady, it is a great honor for someone as lowly as an Eight Edged Assassin to receive a name. It was very kind of you to do so," Yuri explained in what she hoped was a calm manner, trying to reassure her Supreme Being while not fangirling over her Lady..

"Really?" Tiamat beamed, and Yuri's heart was filled with relief. The oldest sister of the Pleiades watched as the Dragoness's enthusiasm sprung from deep inside her eyes and spread to every part of her. "That's great!"

"Yes, it is indeed," Yuri nodded. "Now, let us prepare…"

～('▽^人)

Shallow breaths and pants filled the bedroom.

Yuri was standing behind Tiamat, fumbling with something as Tiamat felt it shift inside of her. Her cheeks flamed, and Yuri noticed. The maid held her arms out to her, as the Dragoness was waiting for her to just _move_.

Yuri moved a bit, and Tiamat flinched, "Ah! Yu-Yuri…"

"My Lady, put your hands up against the wall…"

With half lidded eyes, Tiamat put her sweaty hands on the wall, trying to grasp onto, hold onto something—anything. Her touch was light, dancing across Tiamat's skin, as she shivered when Yuri eased down to her back.

The Dullahan's breath whispered across her neck and Tiamat's spine tensed like a spring.

"Please relax a little, Lady Tiamat…" Yuri begged.

"Hn, n-no more! I can't take it anymore!"

"Now, now," Yuri murmured in her ear, "Don't squirm, it will just make this harder."

How could she do anything but obey?

"Perfect," Yuri commented on her handiwork, and Tiamat finally heard the rustling of dress fabric as Yuri moved away.

"No…" Tiamat begged, "Please, I can't take it anymore...it feels miserable…"

"Please bear with it for a little longer."

The Dullahan's hands moved to her sides, and Tiamat gasped everytime Yuri hit that spot that sent electricity shooting deep throughout her. Yuri heard the Supreme Being's breathing grows hoarse as she squirmed, clenching her legs together.

"Please," Tiamat begged, the words tumbling out.

Yuri took Tiamat by the hips, her lithe arms strong as she pushed the Dragoness closer to the wall. She whimpered a bit, but Yuri didn't give her time to recover.

Tiamat cried out and arched her back, all thoughts having already completely fled her mind, "Stawwwp, pwwwease," she rambled incoherently, over and over.

"I can't," Yuri firmly repeated, and Tiamat turned around, looking back at Yuri dumbly.

"B-But," Tiamat panted, her words stripped out of her by a gasp of pain, "I TOLD YOU MY ORGANS WILL COME OUT!"

"My Lady, there has yet to be a woman whose organs have come out because of a corset," Yuri replied matter-of-factly as she once again tightened the strings on her Lady's back.

"W-Wait, no more, I—ACK!"

Yuri rubbed the sides of her head, "The corset is done, now five more steps to go!" she exclaimed excitedly, picking up several layers of stiff fabric.

Tiamat could only open her mouth in disbelief, "F-Fi-Five," The warmth from her body abandoned her like a naked man on a glacier. "Yuri, I—"

"Yes, My Lady?" Yuri answered with such enthusiasm that Tiamat stopped in her tracks. The maid's usual blank face was replaced by nothing short of impish glee, and the big smile that shone on her face was something Tiamat had never seen before.

"Nothing, keep on torturing me then, Yuri," Tiamat moaned as Yuri hefted the first petticoat over her. Seeing Yuri happy made her happy too.

A little bit of organ shifting was tolerable if she could see that smile every day.

～('▽^人)

Sebas who had been waiting downstairs near the front door had looked up to the balcony of the second floor was surprised to see the Supreme Being emerges.

"My Lady?" he commented, his stoic face not budging an inch. His Lady was all decked out in fabric and lace as she clunkily tried to balance herself while being constrained by the large metal hoop that was supporting the skirt. "Where is your main set of equipment?"

"Lady Tiamat wants to go outside and scout our business competitors," Yuri responded.

"I see, then the disguise is necessary," Sebas noticed the ever-present horns sticking out from Tiamat's head. "Although I may suggest that your horns may draw unwanted attention, My Lady," he pointed out.

"Oh," Tiamat moved her hand to gingerly touch one of her horns, "I almost forgot about them."

She dug into her inventory and rummaged about until she pulled out a glimmering scale of many colors. Tiamat waved around her『Scale of Ragnarok』and her horns vanished into thin air, like dust being carried away by the wind.

"And your hair?" Sebas asked once again.

Her usual straight red hair had been held in place with a simple updo—courtesy of Yuri—which tied half of it in a knot while letting the rest flow loosely down her back.

"This is fine," Tiamat smiled back at Sebas.

'_As expected of the butler of Nazarick, such attention to details.'_

"They've seen me with white hair, but no one here has ever seen me with red hair."

"Understood. If it isn't too much trouble, I also need to buy some magic scrolls for Ainz-sama. So I will be coming along as well if that's alright with you, My Lady."

"Of course Sebas, I would love that!" Tiamat grinned at him.

'_Maybe I could grab an interesting looking scroll and use it as a chance to talk with Ainz…'_

"Then, shall we?" Sebas led her outside of the mansion and into the carriage.

Tiamat climbed up the steps of the carriage and sat on top of the padded seats. As soon as she was comfortably seated, Sebas followed her inside, sitting across from her as he closed the door latch. As soon as she heard the telltale click, the sound of the horse neighing filled the air as the carriage slowly rolled out of the mansion grounds.

The slight movement brought her head up and both of them shifted slightly.

"Where shall we be going, My Lady?" Sebas asked.

Tiamat's mind trundled through her thoughts like a train that has no intention of stopping. As the distance grew further away from the mansion and slowly easing into the streets, she thought of the places she needed to visit, her business competitors.

"First lets visit the most famous shop in the city, and we'll work our way down from there."

"Understood," Sebas leaned out the carriage and muttered a few words to the driver. "We'll be heading to where we picked up outfits for Solution then, My Lady."

"Oh neat!" Tiamat clapped her hands together, "So we have kind of a plan now."

"Indeed, My Lady," Sebas lowered his head in agreement, "Although I must warn you My Lady, the owner is… eccentric."

"Aw, it'll be alright Sebas, I'm sure she won't mind us looking around for a bit," Tiamat leaned her arm against the side of the carriage, watching the citizens in the streets going about their daily lives.

'_The people here look a lot happier than the people back on Earth… Even though there's monsters and stuff everywhere.'_

Sebas—who had been looking at the Supreme Being gazing outside with a happy yet wistful gaze—commented, "It is a beautiful day outside, Lady Tiamat."

"Yes," Tiamat raised her eyes to the sky and closed her eyes as she basked in the sunlight, "It's just that everytime I look outside, life feels less… _stifling_."

The dragonoid's eyes grew ever heavier, and he looked down on his gloved hands.

The raison d'être of the servants of Nazarick was to do their work to the best of their abilities without question. The Supreme Beings were so powerful and intimidating that the servants tended to freeze up in front of them. They could easily get rid of all the things that annoyed them, including the servants.

He remembered how Lady Tiamat had tensed up, how her eyes were full of fear when she had first stepped into his and Solution's base of operations. Even now, he was unable to determine the exact cause of the reaction.

Did that not make him a worthless servant? Even so, Lady Tiamat had brushed it off with a smile.

Sebas thought that even though Lady Tiamat was a Supreme Being, she was a bit different from the others, especially in how she carried herself.

Even though she bore herself with dignity and grace, even though she regularly helped out Ainz-sama with his immense workload, Sebas had overheard the homunculi maids talking about how she lowered herself to cook for the servants and even entertain them with the precious, limited free time that she had; like telling stories to Aura and Mare, accompanying Pandora's Actor in the Treasury's poisonous air, training with Cocytus, or even helping Albedo and Demiurge with their work sometimes.

When she talked she treated them as if they were her equal and on top of acting mature, she always felt comfortable being vulnerable and sharing her problems with them. When she was questioned about her openness, she only smiled with a confused expression and replied,

"I mean, of course I would trust you guys. You're all my family after all!"

But Sebas also heard that whenever she ate, her face would lighten up like a child's.

'_Sadly I haven't had that privilege,'_ he thought to himself. Perhaps in the future.

He knew that the gradual parting of the Supreme Beings had been hard on both of his Masters, which was why Sebas had vowed to himself to serve them to the best of his capabilities, until the end of time.

The carriage jolted to a halt, bringing an end to Sebas's musing with it.

"It appears that we have arrived, My Lady," he notified the Dragoness.

"That was quick," Tiamat commented, stretching her arms out with a groan. Thankfully, the carriage was a lot more comfortable than what the Kingdom had provided her with, so she didn't feel trapped inside a small metal box.

Sebas opened the door of the carriage and went down first before offering the Supreme Being his hand for her to take.

"Then Sebas, shall we shop?"

* * *

**Canon Omake: Torangealit (Part I)**

* * *

If they had a larger mouth, they would have inhaled everything in one bite.

Tiamat watched blankly as the frosty blue-white Dragons in front of her each took a massive chomp out of their full-grown cows. The _gluttons _then crunched up each of their cows whole—bones and all—with their maws wide open, treating her to an unwanted view of the very dead livestock. They gulped it down without so much as pausing to breathe as the good-for-nothing dragons took another bite of their now deceased cows.

Such a stark difference from her babies…

Her babies—Red, Chili, Pepper—at least ate their dinner in tiny small bites, nibbling on it and pausing in between so as to not overstuff their mouths. So different compared to the Frost Dragons who ate as they haven't been fed for months.

Currently, it was feeding time, and when she had nothing better to do, she ate with them.

In her hand was a thick slice of warm bread garnished with a slab of melting golden butter topped with a thick, hearty slice of roasted pork. She felt no need for pretentious manners and ferociously took a bite, ripping a chunk off with her teeth.

Of course, she was unaware of her hypocrisy in judging the Frost Dragons for their table manners.

Turning her attention back to the Frost Dragons once again, she watched as they licked their bloody maws before digging in for another jawful of meat. Their claws were all bloody and disgusting, and she watched with disgust as they clenched the soaked red meat while tearing it open and stuffing the pieces of bovine into their mouths. The obnoxious sound of them licking their blood smeared paws, and the sound of bone crunching banged at her eardrums.

They ate so noisily, slurping like they were some kind of vacuum cleaner, and belched louder than even she would.

'_Even then, I'm sure I only belch in private!' _Tiamat thought vehemently to herself, smugly convincing herself that she was much more refined than the Frost Dragons before her, completely ignoring the bits of butter and pork that were stuck to her mouth.

Despite all of their poor manners, Tiamat was concerned they would choke. After all, they were taking some pretty big bites out of some pretty big cattle.

"You guys have been eating too much," she suddenly stated, wiping her mouth with her sleeve.

One Frost Dragon ate about three cows per meal at a minimum, and they were given meals twice a day, so that made for six cows. However, they sometimes fought over the food that had been given to them, so Tiamat ordered Aura to give them more.

Afterall, she could afford it.

At least, that's what she thought at first…

With Pentakrisis, who ate five cows a day, the babies who ate three cows between them per day, and then these three Frost Dragons who had been eating more than they should. Tiamat could even see a bit of plumpness coming out from their belly.

They were insatiable.

"My Lady!" the shout of a young dark elf gradually grew closer and closer, before suddenly popping into the clearing that Tiamat and the Frost Dragons were currently lazing around in.

"Lady Tiamat!" Aura greeted Tiamat as she ran to the center of the enclosure. Tiamat couldn't help but feel like the scene was something out of a bizarre fairytale, with the Dragons around her, and tall trees with a multitude of twisting branches covering up the magical sunlight above her, allowing only a few rays to touch the ground.

"Aura!" Tiamat eagerly beamed, arms outstretched for a hug.

"Ehehe," the boisterous Dark Elf gave the Dragoness a big grin as she sank into the Supreme Being's embrace—happy that she could take in the motherly warmth of the Dragoness—before she finally asked with big wide eyes, "Have you finished looking around, My Lady?"

"Yeah," Tiamat glared at one of the unaware Frost Dragons, the one who had been dominating the other two: controlling, selfish, and greedy. She pointed her finger at it, "That one, Aura."

"The big fat one? You got it, My Lady!" Aura excitedly exclaimed, confidently flicking her whip as she casually strolled towards the large Frost Dragon.

"Hey you!" Aura snapped her whip at the blue-white winged lizard, "What's your name?"

The Frost Dragon looked up, grumbling in annoyance before his reptilian features froze in primal terror when he saw who was standing before him. The two siblings he had been harassing inwardly smirked, not daring to overtly demonstrate such disrespect before their overseer.

All Tiamat saw was her cute, adorable Floor Guardian directing a big wide smile to the problematic winged lizard before her.

Torangealit, for that was the Frost Dragon's name, saw the wicked grin of a depraved demon.

"L-Lady Aura, I-I didn't see you there," he lowered his head in deference, "What may this humble one d-do for you?" Shame and wrath filled his soul as he felt the hot stares of his two siblings on his back.

"Your name, bud. What is it?" Aura tapped her foot as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Torangealit."

"Oi!" Aura lashed her whip against his foreleg, "Show some respect to Lady Tiamat, wouldja?"

Torangealit whimpered in pain from the fearsome blow as he turned to the dragon-looking red haired woman, "My name is Torangealit, L-Lady Tiamat…"

"If he gets too uppity, I can also tame him back into submission, Lady Tiamat," Aura offered as she proudly puffed her chest out towards the Supreme Being.

"Waa, good job Aura! But I think we'll be okay," Tiamat cooed and reassured the Dark Elf, omitting how she had cringed at how hard Aura had whipped the Frost Dragon. "In any case, I have some news for you…what was it again? Torangealit."

"So listen up!" Aura piped up, raising her whip again in a threatening manner.

Tiamat and Torangealit both flinched; one in surprise, the other in fear.

"Well, uhhh," Tiamat tried to recollect her thoughts; she never knew the small cute elf could get so intimidating, "I'll just get to the point then. Toran, I'm going to be giving you away."

"_What?_" the Frost Dragon could not believe his ears. At that moment, he had completely forgotten the terror he had felt before.

"You guys have been eating too much, and especially _you_," Tiamat pointed her finger at him, "Because of that, I'll be giving you away to someone who'll take care of you."

"_Why?!_ Why me? Why not one of my weaker siblings?" Torangealit whined.

"Mind your manners, _lizard boy_!" Aura lashed him once again with her whip.

Tiamat looked at Torangealit with a bit of pity. He was still young, even if he was obviously a fully grown Dragon. And for a dragon to be called _lizard boi_ was simply too tragic.

"Y-Yes, Lady Aura…" the lizard boy whimpered.

Tiamat decided to interject before Aura ended up maiming the Dragon. "I know this might come as a bit of a shock for you, and that you're reasonably distressed that you're going to be separated from your siblings," Tiamat swore she heard a snort come from the other Frost Dragons, "But I did promise someone that I would give them a Dragon. I'm sure that they'll take very good care of you though!"

Immediately, the Frost Dragon panicked. His heartbeat spiked, and his breath hitched to a stop. To be given as a _pet _to a _human _of all things… He had no doubt that his siblings were snickering at how lowly he had fallen.

"But…!" Panicking blue eyes met calm amethyst ones.

"Yes?"

He would never forget it; those steadfast eyes filled with so much confidence.

Torangealit cowed in a mixture of fear and awe, "I-I will do as you have asked then."

"Awesome!" Tiamat clapped her hands together as a swirling purple portal suddenly appeared behind her, "In that case, let's head out now!"

Bowing his head in despair, Torangealit followed the mighty red-haired woman.

"Are you sure you have nothing to say to your siblings?" she glanced back one last time before she stepped through the rift.

The Frost Dragon turned around to look at his siblings, their eyes haughty and filled with arrogance. Was that how he had looked like just a few moments ago?

"None. Let us leave," he lowered his head to the mighty Goddess. He had so many things he wanted to say. Curses, prayers, wishes for misfortune, but he would not utter those words.

He would not give them that satisfaction.

"I see. Well, you'll get to see them again, if that makes you any happier," the Goddess smiled apologetically. Torangealit tilted his head, curious as to what she meant. To his disappointment, she simply turned back to the swirling purple gap.

"We probably should get going then."

Torangealit nodded his head, following the monstrous lady as she took him to his new future.

* * *

**A/N: The long awaited chapter 27 is here~ and Chapter 28 is out on Discord!**

**Hackslashbash: Omake will lead to interesting developments. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

**Join our Discord, its free!**

Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**elmeted **T**yrant **T**rounces **P**easant **S**od (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**evious **i**nventor **s**parks **c**reation **o**n**r**ejected **d**evices** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	28. Chapter 28: The Strongest in the World

**A/N: Imagine people speculating on how me and Hackslashbash worked together without even knowing the fact lel.**

**Hackslashbash: In response to the reviewer below me who said that I'm the one who edited the "plagiarism" out: that is blatantly untrue.**

**Before I decided to help work on the story, I made sure to read the reviews that accused weeaboo of plagiarism. The one big difference between me and these reviewers however, is that I actually bothered to do my research. I checked out Child of Jormungand, and lo and behold, the only parts that could be considered the same are the fanfic staples of the Overlord community: the Guardians loyalty pledge and the whole just entering the New World schtick. If this could be considered plagiarism, then all Fanfic writers in this community would be plagiarists.**

**With regards to the Yami Alex situation: ironically enough, neither of us had even heard of her story until we started receiving accusations that we were copying her work somehow. In an attempt to keep an open mind, I checked her story too, and yet again, I found out that the only part that could be considered similar was the whole entering the New World intro. If I was really the one who was writing everything, wouldn't I just write my own fanfic instead of helping? The reason that I help is because weeaboo contributes the most to the story, and I enjoy seeing weeaboo bringing the story to life.**

**TLDR: Do your research and don't just blindly believe vicious rumors.**

* * *

**Collection of Ashurbanipal - Volume XLI: Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons, A Myth -**

**Volume XLI, Chapter X - Family**

The sun did not come out that day. Even still, that sunless day was the most joyous day of the Dragon's long life.

Forty champions she met. Forty monsters of variable appearances and vast powers. And all of them were watching her, discussing what was to be done next.

All agreed that she should be let in. After all, the Dragon met all of the requirements to join their most unholy pantheon. Now, they argued over what was to be done with the humans who had hounded her so.

Half cried for war and vengeance. Half advocated for an uneasy peace.

In the end, the differences between the two groups were too great to reconcile. And so, the Great God of Death who lorded over the gathering of Nightmares made his decision, pinning the future of the guild on a single flip of a coin.

The monsters all watched breathlessly as the coin slowly flipped in the air before finally uneasily landing for 'revenge'.

Their fate determined, the monsters all cheerfully prepared for war, even those who had initially disagreed. For fortune had determined it so, and so it must be.

The Dragon watched in confusion. Why were these people whom she had met for but a few hours willing to come to her side so eagerly?

As she watched the chaotic scene before her—a sentient vine that reeked of venomous death drawing up raid plans, a goat-headed demon boisterously laughing over the slaughter that was surely about to take place, the Silver Paladin conversing with a pink slime and a being made of pure Earth—a fleshless hand laid itself upon her shoulder.

She spun around, coming face to face with the God of Death. Already knowing her thoughts through virtue of his supreme knowledge, he answered the questions she was asking within her heart.

They were fighting for their family. A family that she was now a part of.

With this, the Overlord of Death glided forward, calling for the attention of the entire host of Nazarick.

He proclaimed the beginning of a war, a war of endless wrath and unstoppable lightning, a war that would span across countless worlds.

A War to make the World Tree itself tremble from its fury.

The Menagerie of Horrors cheered in cacophonous, uproarious shouts. The day had finally come for them to scar the Worlds with their unquenchable rage.

And so they plotted. They planned where they would fight: from the peaceful piaries of Midgard, to the scorching volcanoes of Muspellheim, and even into the bosom of cold Helheim. Countless hours were burnt away as the monsters gathered information on their enemies, collected a myriad of priceless artifacts, and endless deadly spars: all in preparation for the maelstrom that was to come.

Days, weeks, months passed until the appointed day came.

All Hell broke loose as the bases of countless human and humanoid guilds were all struck with the fury of gods.

The blood of both humans and monsters mingled together that day as bursts of holy and blasphemous fire, waves of cold frost, strikes strong enough to shatter mountains, and many other magics all capable of shaking even the sturdies strongholds clashed against each other.

In the chaos, the Dragon came across a human. Upon seeing her, the pitiful mortal's face contorted in a mixture of rage, fear, and most of all, desperation.

He cried in a maddened rage as he asked the Dragon why such a disaster was to be decreed upon them. Hands driven by crazed anguish pulled his bow taut as he aimed a Blessed arrow at the center of the Dragon's heart.

She knew she would not be able to dodge his mortal strike.

A split-second before the arrow was let loose, the man was relieved of his head by a shining blade.

The Silver Paladin had once again come to her aid. This time not for any sense of contrived justice.

But for Family.

* * *

**Chapter 28: The Strongest in the World**

* * *

A wide variety of shops lined the nearby streets: antique stalls, jewelry and accessory shops, souvenir kiosks and stores selling leather goods, all hectic with activity as each owner tried to showcase their finest wares.

Of course, this included her own boutique. She watched from the ornate windows of her establishment as people flocked about the streets like fireflies to lamps, enthusiasm shining on their features.

Her store was wedged between two taller buildings. It looked squeezed, as if the neighbours were closing in. The sign was old and some letters had become illegible in the peeling paint. But exteriors were just that, exteriors. People know that this place was the luxury boutique they had to visit at least once when they came to the Capital.

_Rosie's Boutique_.

A pristine boutique with wide windows and intricate clothes on display. The shop had sat where it was for generations, and they knew all of their customers by name.

That was why when a familiar carriage stopped right in front of the boutique, she knew that a certain silver haired butler was about to enter.

"Welcome to my boutique," the voice of a posh woman greeted Tiamat and Sebas as they walked past the glass doors. "So I see that you have come again, Mr. Sebas."

"Indeed I have, Ms. Rosie. I've also brought a friend of Lady Solution over who wants to take a look at your wares," Sebas responded respectfully, his head lowering in acknowledgment.

"Oh? Well then, she certainly wouldn't be able to see anything of interest from all the way over there," the owner of the boutique, or at least Tiamat assumed she was, lifted an eyebrow as she spoke out with a firm voice.

The Dragoness decided to take the woman's advice and stepped out from behind Sebas, finally getting a good view of the storekeeper.

Rosie appeared to be a middle-aged woman with a serious expression fixated to her face. Despite her very human expressions, Tiamat thought that she looked exactly like a doll: tall and bony, with short wavy black hair, large blue eyes, and prim, pursed lips.

"Welcome esteemed customer," she bowed once again towards Tiamat, "Please feel free to look around, although I must ask you to exercise some caution."

"Have people messed with your stuff before?" Tiamat asked curiously. She didn't feel like there would be many people who would dare anger such a serious personality.

Rosie's lips curved ever so slightly downward. "There are certain… people, who will take a mile when given an inch."

"Ahhhhh, I see… Those kinds of people," Tiamat vigorously nodded her head, having no clue what kind of person the shopkeeper was referring to.

"I'm glad you understand," the corners of her mouth smirked up a bit, "Now since that's out of the way, if you could be so kind as to tell me your name…?" Rosie raised a single eyebrow.

"Oh! My name is… Tia!" the Dragoness blurted out in what she believed to be a moment of immense genius, "Yes, I'm Tia. It's nice to meet you too, Rosie."

"Are you looking to buy something in particular?" the elegant black-haired woman led them to what seemed like a waiting room with a dark blue sofa.

Tiamat looked around the room in awe.

'_So this is what stores here are supposed to look like…'_

The sea-blue wallpaper gave off a feeling of ease, the lighting was placed in a manner so that the room was without a single shadow yet not blinding, and the massive room where the customers could sit down and relax was filled with just the right amount of furniture.

"If you would be so kind as to sit here," Rosie waved her hand toward the sofa, "I'll have one of my employees bring you the tea while you browse through our catalogue," she looked towards one of her employees who immediately nodded as they silently exited the room.

Tia excitedly sat down in the middle of the three seated sofa while Sebas stood behind her.

"You don't have to bring us a catalogue. I just would like to look at some homewear first, also bonnets, winter coats, and some outerwear as well. Add a lot of dresses to our order as well as some gloves. Ah, pajamas too!" Tiamat said excitedly.

As soon as Tiamat blurted out the stuff she needed, Rosie sighed and gracefully picked up a pen as she pulled a notepad out of seemingly nowhere, quickly listing down everything Tiamat had mentioned.

"Quite a lot of items for 'just'. I think a catalogue would suit your purposes much better, seeing as it also displays items that aren't currently in stock," Rosie tapped the pen against the notepad, "But we do have some dresses ready, will that be alright?"

"That would be great! By the way, would it be okay if I took a look at the dresses before taking measurements?" Tiamat asked with practiced ease.

"Well… that goes without saying, Tia," the well-dressed owner wryly smiled in amusement. At that moment, her employee came back in, tea set and catalogue in hand.

"Thank you, Madeleine. Now, if you could go and grab these items," Rosie tore out the sheet on the notepad she had been writing in and handed it to the employee, "Don't worry about what we're still waiting on. Just bring what we have."

"Yes, ma'am," the well-dressed employee nodded her head and left the room.

"Well then, all we have to do now is wait. Although I must say, this is quite the large purchase," Rosie mused, "It isn't often that someone comes in requesting such a large order."

Her customer must be someone of high status to be able to afford all these. Which only brought to question why she had never heard of a 'Tia' before, especially when she was well acquainted with the nobles in the Capital.

Rosie wiped the thought from her mind. It was none of her business anyways.

In a few minutes, Madeleine and an entourage of other employees returned with boxes of various sizes stacked in their arms: ranging from hair accessories to shoes, as well as racks and racks of clothes topped with figurines to display the dresses in their full glory.

Tiamat watched as they scrambled in and out of the room with Sebas behind her, slowly sipping on her tea as she waited.

'_This is some good tea.'_

"Sebas," Tiamat called out.

"My Lady," the Iron Butler slightly bowed, moving his head closer so that they wouldn't be overheard.

"Sebas," she whispered, "Where's Shroud?"

"Is My Lady talking about the Eight-Edged Assassin that had been guarding you yesterday?"

Tiamat nodded.

"He is securing the premises of the store, Lady Tiamat," Sebas reassured her.

"Ah! So he's here with us?" Tiamat shuffled around in her seat, pleasantly surprised.

"Indeed," Sebas straightened his back again, "It seems that My Lady has taken a liking to him."

Tiamat nodded once again in excitement, "Yeah! I haven't seen him for a few days, so I kinda miss him," she smiled a bit.

The Dragoness turned her attention back to the dresses that the employees had put on display. Even if this was the best boutique in the capital, the designs looked quite..._bold_. So many bright colors like red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. Moreover the designs...Tiamat could only weep.

Aside from the color combinations, the shapes of the dresses themselves were quite a sight to behold. The puffs on the dress were big enough to hide watermelons inside of them, and the neckline dipped ridiculously low. Tiamat had no desire to leave her womanly assets out for everyone to see.

"Are these kinds of designs popular right now?" Tiamat turned her head towards one of the employees who just put down boxes of what she presumed to be shoes.

"Yes," he put down the box as he replied with a smile, "A lot of nobles at the capital would want to look extra special. These kinds of dresses usually draw a lot of attention to them. Ah, this one seems like it would look good for you ma'am," he picked up a particularly bright dress and held it in front of her.

Tiamat's eyebrows furrowed. The dress was _atrocious_. Was he trying to turn her into a rainbow? But she couldn't complain, afterall, tastes could vary wildly from person to person.

"That's great," she said with a slightly forced smile, deciding not to crush the employee's spirit as she continued sipping on her tea.

And so Tiamat passed her time like this, with employees recommending various bizarre outfits until Rosie came back to the waiting room, "Were any of these to your liking?"

Tiamat mumbled, "Sadly, no…"

"I see. I apologize for not having anything suitable for your preferences at the moment," Rosie tilted her head downwards in apology.

"It's nothing," Tiamat smiled, "Would it be alright if we did the measuring now? I want to go look around some other stores as well."

"Of course," Rosie pulled out a measuring tape from seemingly nowhere, "I'm going to need you to stand up, dear."

"Yes," Tiamat placed her teacup and saucer down on the table and got up in a single fluid motion. "Do you need me to do anything else?"

"Hmmm," Rosie tapped her pen against her chin, "Take off your dress and lift your arms up if you would."

Tiamat gawked. "But it took me so long to put this on…"

The ever-serious shop owner arched an eyebrow, "And how do you think I am going to take your measurements with that dress on?"

Sebas frowned and stepped forward as he opened his mouth to protest the request. The Dragoness shook her head before loudly sighing as she prepared herself for the draining task of removing the stuffy dress.

As Tiamat turned her attention to the arduous task of taking off her dress, Rosie helping her remove the several layers as the two gradually dismantled the intricate setup.

When they finally stripped Tiamat of all the layers suffocating her, the Dragoness poked at the corset that was still choking her midsection. "Should I leave this on?"

This time, Rosie raised both of her eyebrows in surprise as she took a step back and put both hands on her hips, "Dear, why are you even wearing a corset? You certainly have no need to wear one, I can tell you that."

At this, Tiamat gaped, arms falling slack to her sides, "I went through that _torture _for nothing?!"

"It certainly wasn't for nothing," the amused shopkeeper smiled as she expertly unlaced and removed the corset, "Now you can empathize with the plight of countless other women."

"There's definitely an easier way to accomplish that," Tiamat groaned in relief as she finally discarded the cursed wrap, now clad in only her chemise. Sebas quietly turned around to face the wall.

"Oh certainly," Rosie wrapped the measuring tape around Tiamat's back and under her arms at the fullest part of her bust, "There are some things that people would go to a great length to achieve though."

"That's true. I just can't comprehend why people would choose to squeeze their _guts _out with that… that thing," Tiamat stood up straighter as the focused shop owner ran the tape in a circle across her waist before closing her legs as Rosie moved to measure her hips.

"My dear, some of the noble women here would give life and limb to convey that delicate appearance," Rosie muttered as she quickly scribbled a few lines of text on her notepad. "People will go to any length for something they truly desire. And for them, that thing is beauty. Anyhow," the shop owner took a step back and gave Tiamat a once-over, "Come back in a week and I'll have your dress ready."

"Eh? But I wasn't planning on buying any of the dresses I saw earlier…" Tiamat wrung her hands, not wanting to offend the shop owner she was beginning to feel oddly comfortable with. Rosie was like the quintessential nanny for a wealthy Western Arcology family.

"Oh, those? Those are horrendous. Fashion is quite odd nowadays," Rosie wryly smiled as she began to help Tiamat put her forest green dress back on. "I forgot to ask this earlier, but this handiwork… is it Paolo's creation?"

"Yes," the Dragoness grunted as Rosie tightened the corset strings with one smooth and powerful pull, "He gave it to me as a kind of a business gift."

"Oho? It must be quite the affair if he's willing to part with such a masterpiece, for free no less," the intrigued shopkeeper expertly put the rest of the layers back onto her red-headed client.

"Yeah, I could tell he worked hard on it too," Tiamat replied easily, caught in the warming flow of the conversation, "It's because I hired him as part of this new business I'm starting up."

For the first time since Tiamat had come in, Rosie had an expression of genuine surprise on her face. "A new business? For clothing I assume, if you've headhunted Paolo to be a part of it."

"_Welllll_, it'll include clothing and some other stuff that I'm still thinking about branching into," Tiamat pulled at the part of her dress around her midsection, "God, I hate corsets."

The dark-haired clothier's mouth teased upwards in a smile, "And you're certainly not the last. I must say, I _am _looking forward to this business of yours, dear."

"Keep your eyes open then~" Tiamat teased. She was really beginning to like the matronly aura around this boutique owner.

'_Maybe I should ask her if she wants to cooperate with me? She is a big name around here despite the fact that the dresses look so… weird.'_

"Rosie," Tiamat took a deep breath in as she looked the curious shop owner in the eyes, "Would you like to work with me as a contractor for my business?"

"Quite bold of you to ask a competitor to join your business," Rosie raised an eyebrow as the corners of her lips teased upwards, "I can't say that I'm against it, but I'll have to see the products first of course. Either way, you're sure to shake up the establishments around here, dear."

"Aww, that's a shame," Tiamat's shoulders slumped in mock disappointment, "Thank you for considering it though. I'll make sure to send you some samples when we get everything set up!" The Dragoness made her way to the door, Sebas in tow, and waved goodbye to the kindly and stern owner.

"I'm already looking forward to it," Rosie dipped forward in a slight bow as she raised her hand in farewell, "Don't forget to come back for your dress."

"Thanks, I won't!" Tiamat cheerfully waved again, one foot through the doorway, "Have a great day, Rosie!"

Rosie smiled, back ramrod straight as she folded her hands across her waist, murmuring as the red-haired woman and her butler faded into the distance, "The times are changing… Perhaps you knew this, Paolo."

Closing her eyes as she let out a small laugh, the shop owner went back into her boutique, preparing for yet another day's work.

▓▒░(°◡°)░▒▓

After visiting five more shops, Tiamat finally figured out why fashion in this world was so weird.

The nobles were trying to draw more attention to themselves.

The more lace or accessories one had, the more the eyes of the crowds would gravitate towards them.

It wasn't the good type of attention. But to these nobles, any publicity was good publicity.

It was basically the same as peacocks flapping their tails to those who didn't care in the best case, and actively hated them in the worst case.

'_Well! It's not like I don't have any experience with these kinds of people anyways,' _Tiamat proudly lifted her chin up, '_Pretty much all of my bakery clients were rich dudes like these.'_

"I apologize, My Lady," Sebas dipped his head low in shame, "I should not have wasted your time with the fools from the shops earlier."

"Ah! It's okay, Sebas. We met one great person after all!" Tiamat brightly smiled, reassuring the downcast butler.

"My Lady, if you do not mind me asking, who is this person that you have been pleased by?" Sebas asked, his slightly raised eyebrows a testament to his astonishment. He truly believed that no one they had met today was suitable to help Lady Tiamat in accomplishing her plans.

One was an arrogant noble couple who thought that copious amounts of money would solve the complete and utter lack of vision they had.

Another was a proud and stout old man who refused to accept any criticism from Lady Tiamat, even going so far as to ask her to leave when she remarked on the lack of style variety in his outfits. Sebas tightened his fists momentarily at the memory of the man who dared treat the Supreme Being with such disrespect.

Then there was Rosie, an eccentric but down-to-earth woman that Sebas had visited with Solution when they were still building their disguises. It was indeed true that Lady Tiamat invited the woman to work with them, but Sebas personally felt that the woman needed to be more respectful of the Supreme Being. That being said, she was certainly the best option at the moment. If she took up his Lady on her offer in any case.

"I think Rosie would be a great business partner, dontcha think Sebas?" Lady Tiamat played with the edge of her sleeve, pinching and rubbing it as she sank back into the seat of the carriage.

'_Lady Tiamat indeed has a good eye for talent," _Sebas too, believed that the first shopkeeper they visited would be the best to work with.

"I believe that she will do an excellent job, My Lady," he replied with his ever-serious expression.

"You're not just saying that to make me happy, are you?" Tiamat scrunched her nose as she leaned forward towards the Iron Butler, "Do you truly think that she can do a good job?"

A bead of sweat rolled down the back of Sebas's neck. "It is my earnest belief that Rosie will do a wonderful job, Lady Tiamat. She is the one of the best boutiques in the Capital, and I'm sure that such a title can only be the result of diligence and hard work."

The red-haired Dragoness hummed. "Hmmm… I just want things to go well, you know?"

Looking at the Supreme Being with a distant, far-away look on her face, the Butler of Steel was overcome with emotion.

Sebas bowed his head, his forehead touching the tips of his knees. "My Lady. On behalf of all the people of Nazarick, thank you for devoting so much of yourself to us," his voice began building up to a fierce crescendo, "I'm sure that I speak for them all when I say this: you can always rely on us to bear your burdens with you, My Lady!"

Tiamat rapidly blinked her eyes.

'_Wow, I don't think I've ever seen Sebas so worked up before, even back in Carne village…'_

"I'll keep that in mind, Sebas," Tiamat smiled reassuringly.

'_Hypocrite,' _a small voice whispered in the back of her head, '_You've called Ainz out on the very thing that you're doing.'_

Just as she was about to fall into a spiral of anxiety, Tiamat heard a loud thud.

When she had first arrived in the New World as a Dragoness, the sensory overload was too much for her. In retrospect, it was her being unable to tune out the vast variety of stimuli her body could pick up. From words to the ticking of the clock on a wall, a person's breath, their heartbeats, everything was all amplified tenfold.

It was the world pressing down on her, a sudden tightness that crawled over her skin, making her want to claw on her bones, while she couldn't do anything but panic.

It took her some time to get used to the newfound sensations.

Now, the carriages on the road, the voices in conversation, the sounds of footsteps against the brick road, the slamming of doors, or the tinkle of a bell; they were loud, but she had slowly gotten used to them.

So it surprised her when she heard a loud sound that came from the back alley of a rundown and seemingly abandoned building.

The heavy grunt of a man and a dull thud followed quickly after, before Tiamat heard the very,_ very_ faint sound of someone moaning in pain.

"Sebas, did you hear that?" Tiamat sat upright, poking her head out the window as she looked back and forth, looking for the source of the noise.

"My hearing is not as good as yours, My Lady. But I can hear it faintly," Sebas quietly waved for the driver to stop.

Tiamat strained her eyes towards the source of the sound.

The rundown building reeked of a vile feeling. Frankly speaking, it gave her an extreme feeling of unpleasant deja vu.

"Should we check it out?" Tiamat mumbled as she stepped out of the stopped carriage.

"In that case, allow me to go before you, My Lady," Sebas stepped in front of her as the two cautiously approached the run-down building.

As the two came closer, Tiamat's nose was assaulted with a foul smell.

A sickening scent of sweat, blood, and human waste.

"What an awful smell…" she had unconsciously brought her hand up to her nose in an attempt to block the offensive miasma.

It reminded her too much of the child she had saved in the depth of the gem caverns the other day.

"Indeed," Sebas narrowed his eyes at an oddly shaped object wrapped in a brown rice bag, the stretched stitching showing the strain the bag was under. The thick yarn had several pulled holes and heavy tearing on one side, "That appears to be what had caught your attention, My Lady."

Immediately, Tiamat walked towards the brown lump, all thoughts of caution thrown to the wind.

"My Lady!" Sebas's voice rose a bit in panic. It would be bad if they were to be ambushed now.

Tiamat could understand his worries, but Tiamat was a『World Guardian』.

Being a『World Guardian』meant that she was highly resistant to both physical and magical attacks. Of course, that didn't mean she would rush recklessly towards an opponent that was obviously stronger than her. But for now, she knew that the strongest in this Kingdom, which happened to be Blue Rose, did not even hold a candle to nearly all of the Pleiades maids.

Tiamat stood there in quiet contemplation for a few more moments before she bent down and gingerly poked the bag. Sebas tensed himself, preparing to cover the last few meters with a skill.

The lump didn't move. Or explode, unleash a deadly poison, or summon a powerful monster for that matter.

The butler allowed himself to slightly relax right until he saw the Supreme Being boldly open the bag.

Inside was what would have been a pale delicate face. Instead, was a heavily bruised caricature of a human covered in purple blotches and sores with thin, withered blonde hair.

Tiamat's face turned sickly pale as she almost turned away from the sight. It was as if she had found a corpse—or an almost corpse—because the girl on the road was lifeless. _Lifeless_.

Her blond hair was tattered, stained with dried blood, turning what would have been a bright yellow into a filthy brownish-red. Her face was blotched from the bruises, obviously from being beaten, and her dull, lifeless blue eyes could barely be seen from her swollen eyelids. She was naked, thrown away to the streets. And the smell. The smell was the most disgusting thing she had ever sniffed since coming to the New World.

It was blatant that her bowels had been released at some point.

Tiamat's heart pounded against her ribcage as one thought raced through her mind.

'_Who did this?'_

"My Lady, please move away from that at once," Sebas gently put his hand on the Supreme Being's shoulder, hoping to guide her away from the obviously distressing scene.

They weren't prepared for this sort of situation at all. Normally, he would've considered helping the girl if she proved herself worthy, but now he also had the Supreme Being's safety to worry about too.

But instead of listening to Sebas, Tiamat was trapped in her own thoughts, tightly clutching to the near-lifeless body's frail shoulders, "Are you alright?" she quietly asked, her voice cracking.

The girl reminded her too much of herself.

Tiamat bit her lips when she heard the uneven breathing that the girl's lungs desperately worked for, as if her body couldn't even do something as simple as taking in air anymore.

_Getting shoved down on the bed._

"Lady Tiamat," Sebas's voice became stern, "Please step aside."

_Mocking voices all around._

"B-But it's…"

'_Me.'_

"I understand your distress, however, please let me take care of this," the butler lowered his head as he spoke with a firm voice.

Sebas's eyes hardened. After he had heard the report from the Eight Edged Assassin who had accompanied Lady Tiamat in her outings yesterday, he concluded that the Supreme Being had too many enemies to count. It wouldn't hurt to be cautious right now, especially if it was related to their Lady's well being.

"We're going to help her right? We're not just going to leave—" the trembling voice of his Lady was suddenly cut off by a rude and coarse shout.

"Oi, you!" The rickety backdoor was thrown open as a large, gruff man with a shirt covered in stains walked out. "Get the *** out of here!"

"We're just trying to help this girl!" Tiamat's eyes narrowed at the man, fists clenched in anger, yet paralyzed by the vast array of emotions she was feeling.

"I don't care what you're trying to do. Leave the girl there and *** off before I *** your *** up lil' missy!" the man shook his fist threateningly at her.

Tiamat flinched.

_Getting beaten._

He spat in her face.

His head exploded in a shower of red a moment later.

"W-Wha?" Tiamat wiped her face with the back of her palm, her mouth a gaping expression of shock, "Why did you do that?!"

"I apologize, My Lady," Sebas looked at the headless corpse with a cold, hard stare, "I lost control of my emotions there."

Tiamat just stared numbly at the now-headless man. His sudden appearance and equally sudden death was jarring to say the least.

Sebas turned his head towards Tiamat, and she noticed that even though he had just _smashed someone's head_ like it was an overripe watermelon, his gloves were as clean and spotless as ever. The butler pulled a handkerchief from the inside pocket of his suit and proceeded to gently wipe down Tiamat's face with it.

"Please excuse me, My Lady," Sebas apologized as he tucked the handkerchief back into his pocket.

For a hand that had just brutally murdered someone, they were as gentle as a saint's. She would have never had thought that the hands handling her as if she was the finest porcelain could exert so much power.

Tiamat stopped his hand with her own, "Why did you do that, Sebas? It's not like he could've hurt us," she gently asked him as she looked him in the eyes.

_That's a lie. _

Sebas held her firm gaze,"For anyone to dare to humiliate a Supreme Being in such a manner… Such a cowardly act must be punished. He is fortunate that his punishment was just a quick and swift death. A session with Neuronist Painkill would have been far more suitable for a fool like him," Sebas swiftly replied, his voice full of conviction.

"But..." Tiamat turned her head back at the dead body and flinched.

It was not a pretty sight.

Her thoughts drifted towards Ainz and how he had urged her not to do anything stupid. She didn't want to add any more stress to his plate. She really didn't. Yet even now, she was overcome by her emotional impulsiveness to do _something._

Do what she thought was right and make trouble for her family, or leave the girl to die?

Tiamat hung her head in guilt as she thought about how her thoughtless actions could lead to more trouble for Sebas and Solution, and even Ainz, whose plans were relying on the maid and butler.

'_What if people get sent after Sebas and Solution? I'm not worried about them getting hurt, but their job is definitely going to be more difficult from here on out… Why did I decide to just check out this sketchy place on a whim?' _Tiamat's anxiety overflowed from her thoughts to her mouth.

'_More importantly…' _her mind flashed back to the Slane Theocracy.

_Screaming. Devastation. Fire. So, so, so much fire._

"What should we do? Do we just leave the body here? No way, we definitely have to hide that somewhere. What if they find us? WhatifAinzfindsout? _We'regoingtobeinsomuchtroub—_" she rambled on as she wrapped her arms around her knees, her nerves completely burned out.

"My Lady," Sebas tried to reassure her as he put his hand on her shoulder, guilt already clouding his mind for driving the Supreme Being to such a state, "Everything will be taken care of. For now, let us return to the house with this girl. Shroud."

Upon being called, the arachnoid assassin appeared out of nowhere and bowed before the two. "Should I annihilate everyone within this building, Sebas-sama?"

"No," the butler calmly shook his head as he gestured to the limp headless body, "For now, just get rid of that body there."

"Consider it done," the Assassin bowed again before it disappeared along with the remains of the disgusting enforcer.

'_Gone just like I could've been,' _Tiamat thought idly.

"My Lady. I am truly sorry for interfering with any plans you may have had, and I will gladly accept any punishment you see fit once we return to somewhere safe. But please," Sebas gently put his hand on Tiamat's back, giving her a slight nudge towards the back alleyway, "Let us leave this place first."

"But the girl…" Tiamat's voice faltered as she spoke to Sebas, still unsure as to what she wanted to do herself_._

'_She's not as important as your family,' _a voice whispered from the depths of her mind.

"Yes, I did say that we were taking her with us," the butler knelt down and put his hands under the bag, lifting it in one smooth motion, "However, I am almost certain that the owner of this building," he nodded his head toward the dilapidated building, "Will come and investigate what had just happened. That's why I must admit that I am a bit hesitant in taking this girl with us. I truly am sorry, My Lady, but I suggest that we leave her here."

Sebas unconsciously formed a fist in his agitation. He wanted to save the girl too, but they couldn't afford to assume that whoever had put her in such a state would be too incompetent to track them.

However, one sentence from his creator kept on ringing in his ears.

"_Saving someone in trouble is common sense!"_

His heart was filled with shame. He felt like the lowest of trash for even considering abandoning the obviously in need girl, but what he had said was true. The Supreme Being's well-being took precedence over everybody else's.

Sebas began to walk towards the alleyway with the bag in his arms, "I have no intention of saving those who only pray for others to extend a helping hand. But if Lady Tiamat truly desires it, then it will be done. However," Sebas looked down at the broken girl in pity, "It is truly pitiful to see someone who simply waits for good fortune to fall upon them. Humans are not plants, and they should take action for themselves," his voice remained stern as he began to walk towards the alleyway where Tiamat now was.

Sebas's words echoed throughout her brain, slowly boiling the pent-up frustration and confusion deep in her system until it was as furious as volcanic lava. It churned within, hungry for an outlet, and she knew that it would be too much for her to handle. She knew that the pressure would force her to say things she didn't mean or express thoughts that she had suppressed for years.

'_Will you really let him tell you what to do?' _the voice mocked.

She had to get out before she lost control of her emotions because she didn't want to hurt Sebas, who was obviously just doing his best to look out for her.

Yet, she couldn't help but feel furious at how he considered abandoning the girl.

_Her again. On the ground. No one could help. No one __**wanted **__to._

'_They should take action for themselves,'_ those words kept repeating themselves in her mind.

_She should have taken action for herself._

Tiamat's nails bit into the palms of her hands.

"How?" she suddenly asked.

Sebas stopped moving, his shoulders tensing in obvious worry.

"She should have pulled herself together and taken action by herself," he carefully replied.

Tiamat gritted her teeth, "I disagree," her soft voice hid a sharp edge.

_Weak. Helpless. Worthless._

"Excuse me, My Lady?"

Tiamat marched right up to Sebas's face, "I disagree," she said again, her voice louder this time.

"No matter how many times you disagree with me, Lady Tiamat, everyone in Nazarick knows that you and Ainz-sama's safety is of the utmost importance. The life of any other being is insignificant compared to yours. No matter how strong Lord Touch-Me had made me, there's only so much I can do."

"Then, do you consider yourself strong?" Tiamat challenged.

_Am I?_

Sebas looked at the Dragoness whose amethyst eyes were blazing golden with suppressed fury, a clear testament to how powerful the Supreme Being was.

Why then, could he see nothing more than a hurt and scared child? Why then, could he only see a woman who was starved of the love that she craved so much? The blasphemy of such thoughts sent a shiver through his entire body.

"Yes, Touch Me-sama, made me strong," he relented, lowering his head in resignation.

"He shouldn't have," Tiamat sharply retorted.

"How so, My Lady?" Sebas's expression stoic despite how the Supreme Being's words had cut deeply into his heart.

Tiamat stared at Sebas, and with all of the courage that she had, she quietly whispered, "What good is all the power in the world if you don't help people like her?"

_A building crumbling. People choking to death in a hellish haze of dust and smoke._

Tiamat held back a bitter laugh. What a hypocrite she was.

But even so, she couldn't help but desperately want to help the girl. Her beaten down body reminded Tiamat too much of herself. What if no one had found her in that god-forsaken mansion?

Maybe she wasn't really helping the girl. Maybe it was just all for herself.

"Look at her, Sebas," Tiamat pleaded, a hint of desperation creeping into her voice, and the butler looked down at the fragile being he was carrying, "How could she have pulled herself together when someone beat her every single day? How could she have done anything if she was locked up by herself, abused, and had no one to even talk to? Do you even know how much pain she's gone through? Do you understand? Try putting yourself in her shoes!" without her realizing, she had been gradually raising her voice towards Sebas.

Perhaps this was all she was worth in the end. Someone who spat on the very people who were doing their best to care for her.

But even still, she couldn't leave it be.

"If it was me…" she continued, her voice trembling, "Would you still say what you're saying?"

Leaving Sebas with wide eyes, Tiamat whipped around and ran out of the alley.

She ran past the drying bloodstains of where the man's body once was, past the awful building that made her feel _miserable_, and past the carriage they came in.

Tears streaked across her tightly closed eyes as the wind blew her hair into disarray.

'_Why did I say all of that? Why am I such a ***ty person?'_

She kept on running and running until she finally ran out of breath from all her sobbing. The Dragoness bent her back and rested her hands on her legs as she tried to catch her breath.

"Lady Tiamat," Sebas's voice arose from behind her. Apparently, he had decided to follow her even after she had talked down to him.

Tiamat laughed mirthlessly. "What is it, Sebas?"

"My Lady," he quietly said, his usual firm voice filled with exhaustion, "I want to save this girl too. But I beg you," the butler bowed, taking care to not jostle the girl in his grasp, "Please understand that we are only looking out for your and Lord Ainz's safety."

"I know. I know… " Tiamat closed her eyes as she tiredly replied. "It's just that… seeing her brought back some old memories. I'm sorry for yelling at you, Sebas. I… I don't expect you to forgive me for saying all of that, but I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry," Tiamat bowed towards the butler, whose eyes were now wide open in shock.

'_Do you think a quick 'sorry' can fix everything?' _this time, she didn't know if it was the voice or herself mocking her.

"My Lady! There is nothing to apologize for, so please quickly raise your head," he frantically urged her to stand back up. "It is not right for a Supreme Being to bow before anyone."

"Still," Tiamat straightened her back, one arm clutching the other as she looked down at the ground and muttered, "Being a Supreme Being doesn't mean I should talk to my children in such a way."

'_And what a wonderful mother you are,' _a heavy dose of sarcasm accompanied that thought.

"M-My Lady," Sebas had several mixed feelings. He was elated at hearing her call him her child, but to see Lady Tiamat in such a state…

He would gladly die if it ensured the Supreme Being's happiness.

"Let's just go back home," Tiamat wiped her face with her hands, "The girl needs our help."

"Yes, My Lady."

▓▒░(°◡°)░▒▓

Cold. It was always so cold.

The stench of cheap perfume and her blood mixed together filled the air of the small room that she was in. The sound of a girl weakly crying as an unknown man beat her.

It took her a moment to realize that the girl was her.

The swish of a leather lash slicing through the air to meet against her skin. She knew that no matter how hard she cried here, no one would listen to her pleas.

His booming laughter, full of cruelty, hurt her ears. The screaming, the beating. The laughter as he tried to satisfy himself. The panting of a noble—who was anything but—as he laid on top of her: _disgusting_. They were doing worse things to her than just beating now.

Her wails. _Help me_, she cried. _Help me. Please stop. Help._

She was helpless, trapped. No one was coming to save her. Of course, she knew all of this. Even still, she used what little energy she had left to plead, hoping that someone, _anyone, _would hear her.

'_Please, if there is a God… I pray to you. Make it stop.'_

She squeezed her swollen eyes shut as another round of beating came again.

The man's sadistic laugh, mocking her. "_I am your God and I will never make it stop!"_

The dull, endless pain swallowed her, engulfing her whole body. It was unbearable. The impact of fists against her skin. Hands that pulled her hair taut, to the point where she thought her scalp was ripping off. The constant abuse… it hurt, everything hurt.

She couldn't take it anymore. She would rather die. She'll do it. She'll kill herself.

The small glass shard in her shaking hands. She knew that this would set her free.

"_Don't you dare,_" he mocked, _"You are mine and mine alone. Your life belongs to me. I will decide when you will die_."

The screaming. The crying. The helplessness. His hands. His fists. His sloppy kisses.

Then, a new batch came. The new girls looked so scared, so...innocent. She could see them trembling, hugging each other close for warmth. Crying, wailing as if they have lost the world.

They had no idea what real terror looked like. For now at least.

Once the man found a new favorite, he used her one last time, and threw her out, just like garbage.

_That's because you are. You're good for nothing at all._ _Even garbage has more value than you._

At this point she didn't know if it was her voice or his.

The pain that once burned like fire had faded away to an icy numbness. Black filled the edges of her vision, and the only thing she could hear was her own weakening heartbeat and the ringing inside her ears.

Her breath came in ragged, shallow gasps. Seconds passed as she lay there, two voices echoing in the distance.

Or maybe the voices were close by. She really couldn't tell anymore.

The blurred sight of two people appeared at the edge of her vision, swarming over her. They were trying to help, she realized.

'_Are they really?' _she cynically thought. Maybe they were perverts who were waiting for her to die before using her. She had seen lots of people like that back in the brothel.

Well, it didn't matter. She knew that this was where she was going to die.

Even on the very small off-chance that they were here to help, surely they could tell that it was far too late for her to be saved. The despair and viciousness of the world that took everyone she loved away from her. She would be joining them soon though. She would be able to leave all the pain behind.

If she just closed her eyes, she could die happy now.

"_Tsuare nee-chan!"_ she remembered. A long time ago, her little sister had called her with such endearment, jam decorating her cheeks. _"Where have you been nee-chan, I missed you!"_ she pouted, but she would still leap into her arms and hug her affectionately, with a kiss on the cheeks.

A sticky kiss filled with jam, her favorite kind of kiss.

They used to eat and play, running over the hills, braiding each other's hair, and joking about how she would look like if she was a boy.

And then.

It was gone.

It was..._quiet_.

There was silence. That was very rare.

Wherever she was, it was warm. There was no screaming or crying.

Most importantly, there's no cackling or the sound of his boisterous laughter.

She slowly opened her eyes, before they widened in surprise. All her aches and pains had vanished without a trace. The blonde girl slowly and cautiously rubbed all the parts of her body, noticing in disbelief that her previously bruised and swollen skin was the smoothest it had ever been.

It had been a long time since she had felt like this.

The girl sat up from the bed, and looked around her. She could see the shadows of the candle that were dancing across the walls of the room. Her eyes slowly got used to the dim lighting as she took in the vision in front of her. The bed, the sofa, the ceiling, but most importantly, the shadow sitting by her side.

"Are you alright?" the sound of a woman, asking with a gentleness she hadn't heard in a long, long time. Gentleness she didn't know if she deserved.

She turned to her side and saw her sitting on a rough, unadorned wooden chair to her right. Her eyes were as beautiful as any gem she had ever seen, and her hair was as red as a crimson rose—shimmering as the candlelight threw its light over it. Her skin was as smooth as porcelain, but her smile. Her smile was as warm as the sun itself.

She felt strange. Light and airy. _Peaceful_.

"Get some more sleep," the beauty next to her whispered, gently brushing the hair off her forehead, making her feel at ease.

And so she slept peacefully, for the first time in years.

▓▒░(°◡°)░▒▓

It had been three days…

Three days since he had last seen Tiamat.

He glanced at the empty desk before him, and he couldn't help but to sigh.

He had found the office to be cold and lonely, even if he was accompanied by the ever loyal Succubus.

He missed her boisterous laughter, her scent—as muted as it was in his undead form. Her very presence cheered up everyone in the room she was in.

Ainz had to admit, he was missing her a lot more than he thought he would. Her constant presence had pestered his life and existence for long enough that it seemed as if he could not bear to be apart from her for too long.

"Ainz-sama," Albedo's soft lilting voice interrupted his train of thoughts, "Is everything alright?"

It seemed that Albedo had noticed how he had stopped writing. _'How observant,' _he thought to himself. Nothing less was to be expected from the Overseer of Nazarick herself.

"Nothing," he swiftly replied with a clipped tone and returned to analyzing the mountain of paperwork he had in front of him.

"It may be presumptuous of me to ask this, Ainz-sama, but are you worried about Lady Tiamat?" Albedo asked from her desk, jotting down a few notes regarding the production of produce on the Sixth-Floor as she did.

His quill stopped, and Ainz slowly looked up to his left where Albedo was sitting. His red orbs pierced the Succubus's yellow ones, and the Overseer of Nazarick gulped from the intensity of the Supreme Being's aura.

"Yes," Ainz finally said, his shoulders slightly drooping. He decided that he had to be honest with himself, "I am worried about her."

"Ainz-sama," Albedo slowly got up and walked to the front of his desk, "Shall I contact Sebas and ask him how Lady Tiamat is doing?"

Truthfully, Albedo missed Lady Tiamat as well. Without the Dragoness's presence in Nazarick, the whole place seemed to lack the energy and vigor they had all gotten so used to. Honestly, it had been detrimental to the rest of the Floor Guardians' work as well.

Aura and Mare were far less cheerful without the Dragoness around. Lady Tiamat would usually accompany them for lunch, and without her it seemed that the twins' effectiveness in their work had decreased by a noticeable margin. Albedo did berate them for this, albeit half-heartedly.

Even if they were children, they were still Floor Guardians of Nazarick. They had responsibilities to fulfill. That being said, she fully understood how they felt.

Cocytus had been training more by himself more often, and Albedo had to admit that it was a lonely sight to watch. Even though he never spoke about it, he would sometimes go to the Sixth Floor to console the twins.

Albedo had also heard from the maids that Shalltear had been p***ing by the kitchen everyday during lunch time, looking for a figure that would not be there. She couldn't find it in herself to tease the bratty Vampire.

Demiurge had been the only one to maintain his large workload. But even so, Albedo sometimes caught one or two typos in his documents. The mistakes were not important, afterall, she could fix those mistakes easily. It was the fact that even the perfect Demiurge was distracted enough to make those simple mistakes.

But most especially, Albedo missed her.

The Dragoness had become a silhouette and left behind nothing but darkness. There was an ache that came and went, always returning in quiet moments. The Succubus knew she was being melodramatic, but what could she do? She felt what she felt.

Albedo wanted nothing more than to talk and laugh like they often did. Everywhere she went and everything she did reminded her of the motherly Dragoness—from doing paperwork, to eating lunch, and even whenever she was working with or accompanying Ainz-sama. She had gotten lonely to the point of even visiting the egghead in the Treasury, who turned out to be surprisingly good company.

Albedo smirked for a moment as she recalled the antics of Ainz-sama's creation.

'_I've never expected Pandora's Actor to do something as ridiculous as singing while he was a sofa.'_

Perhaps she would visit him again later… Just like Lady Tiamat always would.

Albedo's small smile slowly fell.

She really wanted to see mo—Lady Tiamat again. Even if she was only going to be gone for a short while, it felt like years to Albedo.

She missed the arm that wrapped around her as much as she missed her warmth. If she had never felt such warmth, she wouldn't have been able to bond as closely as she had with the denizens of Nazarick.

Her _family._

And for that, she was grateful. She was grateful that she could casually tousle Aura's hair without feeling awkward. She was happy for how she could share a drink with Shalltear without insulting her even once. And she was especially thankful that Lady Tiamat's Halloween antics had led to her meeting the quirky Treasurer downstairs.

Albedo softly sighed. Lady Tiamat always wore her feelings on her sleeves, and even lowered herself to the point where she cooked meals for the denizens of Nazarick, an act that could be done by any lowly cook.

Regardless of the Dragoness's status, she had always treated those around her well, making the people surrounding her as happy as she could by putting their needs first.

It was even harder when the leader of Nazarick himself had admitted that he missed her.

Truth be told, Albedo wanted to contact Lady Tiamat for her own sake too. She could ask how she was doing or if she was healthy. And if she was lucky enough, perhaps she would get to hear her voice or ask her to come back to Nazarick to get a few moments of rest.

However, the Supreme Being in front of her didn't respond as she wanted.

He laid his pen on the desk, "There is no need," he boomed with such authority that Albedo couldn't help but to bow her head slightly.

She didn't know if the crushing feeling in her chest was from the Supreme Being's aura or from her own disappointment.

"Albedo," Ainz-sama continued more softly, "You must understand, Tia is busy as well. She'll return to Nazarick sooner or later."

"I understand," the raven-haired Overseer calmly responded, the smile on her face betraying her feelings.

After a few moments of silence, they returned to doing their own respective paperwork. Ainz tensed his jaws, despite it having no effect on him at all.

It had been one hell of a three days for him. His mind kept replaying the moment where he ran away from her as she was reaching her hand out to him.

Her face had fallen faster than a rock, turning into the very picture of misery, nothing at all like the cheerful woman he was so familiar with.

If he closed his eyes—or what counted as closing his eyes for him—he could still see the tears that had begun to form from the corners of her eyes and the disappointment etched on her face.

But his action was justified; it was not her place to worry about Nazarick. He, Ainz Ooal Gown, the bearer of the name of his own guild, would be the one responsible for the safety and security of his home—their home. All she had to do was to be there, to be safe, to be alive, _to_ _be happy_.

Yet, why did his action cause her so much pain?

Ainz decided to put down his quill again. It seemed that his mind was not in the right place to work after all. His red orbs traveled to the beautiful Succubus who was working diligently to his left.

Perhaps it wouldn't hurt him to ask.

Ainz cleared his throat, "Albedo."

Albedo immediately shot up from where she was sitting, the legs of her chair clattering against the floor as it shook from her sudden movement, "Hai, Ainz-sama! Shall I contact Sebas now?"

"No, as I told you before that will not be necessary. I just wanted to ask you about something."

"Please ask me about anything, Ainz-sama."

"Very well," Ainz rested his elbows on the desk, his bony fingers interlacing as he rested his chin on top of his hands, "There's this friend of mine from a long time ago."

Albedo nodded, urging the Supreme Being to continue.

"He was the leader of another guild, called...ドキドキ. Hmm, yes. That was what it was called. Anyways, the guild leader was a responsible person, and he did all that he could to make sure his home was safe and protected. He had a lot of guild members, although I don't know how they're doing now, but they were happy under his guidance. However, one among them wanted to help, but he always pushed her away," Ainz stared the Succubus in the eyes. "What do you think of this, Albedo?"

Without missing a beat, she replied, "Was she trying to dethrone him?"

"No!" Ainz slammed the desk in front of him, just the thought of Albedo thinking that Tiamat was trying to betray Nazarick had overloaded his emotional suppression and without him realizing, he had raised his voice at Albedo.

Embarr***ed, Ainz cleared his throat, and within a few seconds, a green aura washed away his burning feeling of shame, returning him to his calm and composed self, "I apologize Albedo, but no. She was simply trying to help."

"There is no need for you to apologize, Ainz-sama, I was out of line," Albedo gracefully bent her waist in a bow.

"It was an honest mistake, anyone would have thought of that first as well. But what do you think?" Ainz tried to re***ure the Overseer.

"If he knew she was simply trying to help, then why would he have refused in the first place?" Albedo scrunched her eyebrows together in confusion.

"It was because he felt it was not her place to do so."

"How so?"

"Hm?"

"Isn't she a member of his guild? Then why would he not allow her to help?"

"She helped, just not with his responsibilities," Ainz replied, "You see Albedo, there is a difference in responsibilities. For example, you, as the Overseer of Nazarick, would have a different set of duties compared to all the Floor Guardians, correct?"

"Yes, that is correct, Ainz-sama," Albedo nodded in agreement.

"Then if a Floor Guardian, let's say, Shalltear, helped you with your responsibilities. Wouldn't it make you feel that your work was being devalued, or that you needed help from Shalltear because you weren't good enough? Moreover, you know for certain that it is not Shalltear's responsibility to take care of your workload," Ainz explained.

At this point, Ainz knew that he was being a bit petty. The way he explained things represented only a sliver of the truth. For him, it was more important that Tia was safe and protected in this dangerous world. And for that to happen, all she had to do was to sit still and stay next to him, yet, she did everything but the opposite. That was why out of all Floor Guardians, he knew that if he chose Shalltear, Albedo would be on his side in this argument.

That was why Ainz didn't expect what came out of her mouth.

"I wouldn't mind."

"Eh?" Ainz's jaw dropped in surprise. Didn't the two have a cat and dog relationship?

"Well," Albedo looked up at the ceiling with a wry smile teasing at the edges of her lips, "No matter how annoying Shalltear is, she's still family," the Overseer directed her piercing yellow gaze straight into the Overlord's burning crimson ones.

"And I know that no matter what, she'll always be there when I need her," Albedo finished with a firm tone, her eyes brimming with fierce determination.

"So you wouldn't mind if you feel that your work was being devalued?"

"I wouldn't mind. Her helping me just means we're close enough to help each other. I know that the Supreme Beings are as wise as they are kind. Therefore, neither you nor Lady Tiamat would think of it that way," she closed her eyes and smiled.

"Then, what if something went wrong and Shalltear was placed in a dangerous situation because of you?"

"Then I would do my best to fix those mistakes. Of course, I would do everything in my power to prevent anything like that from happening," her voice held so much conviction that Ainz was a bit irritated.

"What if you become dependent on her?"

Albedo beamed as she steadily held the imp***ive face of the Supreme Being, "If that were to happen, I would be happy."

At this revelation, Ainz continued staring at Albedo, urging her to continue.

"To me, Ainz-sama, I feel that my creator, Tabula-sama, had made me to cover the weaknesses of Nazarick itself. To protect, defend, to work effectively. It may be narcissistic of me to say this, but I know that I was made to be perfect for Nazarick," Albedo explained, bringing her hand up to her heart.

Ainz almost gulped. He didn't know that the Floor Guardians would be this self-aware.

Seeing that the Supreme Being was not making a rebuttal, Albedo continued.

"The Floor Guardians could rely on me, but it would be hard for me to rely on them because I am the Overseer of Nazarick. That was what I had once thought. I was very proud of my work, it was my life, my joy, my very existence, my purpose. Yet I learned from Lady Tiamat what it means to be vulnerable, what it means to trust," Albedo took in a deep breath, "And I have to say that it's a very, _very _wonderful feeling to be able to depend on the people that care about you as much as you care about them."

"So that's why you wouldn't mind?"

"Yes," she serenely smiled, "I wouldn't mind."

Ainz scoffed, "Such shallow reasoning."

Even though he said that, Albedo continued smiling, because she knew that there was no malice or hatred in those sentences.

"That is what I believe, Ainz-sama," she responded after a moment, "Were my answers able to give you a bit of clarity?"

"As I said, it's shallow reasoning. I wouldn't say I'm completely opposed to it as I could see your point, but I fear that my belief would be different from yours."

"How so, Ainz-sama?"

"If she were to be hurt from helping, then all the nice-sounding sentiments in the world wouldn't do a bit to heal her injuries. In the end, everything you've said just sounds nice on paper, but if Tia were to be hurt, then… "

His body stopped moving, and his eyes drifted to the ceiling of his office. The Eight-Edged ******ins were stuck there on the ceiling, guarding him.

'_Now that I think about it, I did send a dozen of them to guard her as well…_' the Succubus's voice shook him out of his musing.

"So, you admit that you're worried about Lady Tiamat then, Ainz-sama?" Albedo widened her eyes in what Ainz swore was mock surprise, a teasing tone hinting at the edge of her voice.

Ainz cleared his throat, "She's reckless. I cannot help but worry about her."

Albedo stifled a smile. She was already pushing the boundaries of respect with Ainz-sama. "Lady Tiamat does make us feel that way, doesn't she?"

The Overlord snorted, "Tell me about it. The idiot will probably turn out to be fine anyways. But I must admit, I'm also curious about something," Ainz leaned forward from his chair, "How is Pandora's Actor doing? I've heard that you've been visiting him recently. That child can be a bit… strange, so please don't take anything he says too seriously."

A green aura shone around him.

'_Ahhhhhhhh, if only I'd known Albedo was going to visit him, I would've told him to not do any of that cringy German stuff."_

"Oh! Please don't worry about that, Ainz-sama," Albedo lips tenderly quirked up, "I've enjoyed my time with Pandora's Actor. I can re***ure you, he's doing okay, albeit a bit lonely ever since Lady Tiamat left."

"That's good," Ainz unnecessarily cleared his throat, "Perhaps I should let him out of the Treasury more often…"

"I'm sure he would be_sehr glücklich _to hear that, Ainz-sama," Albedo's eyes warmly shone in agreement.

"Indeed. Socializing might do him some good after all…" Ainz paused for a moment before his jaws dropped open.

"Ainz-sama?" Albedo raised her eyebrows in worry, "Are you alright?'

"Did… Did you just use German?" a leafy glimmer flickered around the shocked Skeleton.

"Yes," Albedo placed a hand on her flexed bicep, "I picked up a few things from Pandora's Actor. A good Overseer ought to learn from the people she works with after all."

"_Looks like you've picked a few things up from Tia too," _Ainz mused to himself. The Succubus's pose reminded him too much of Tiamat.

"R-Really, Ainz-sama?" Ainz shot his head up at the sudden change in Albedo's tone. He had heard the Overseer when she was angry, ashamed, desperate, but this… this was… _embarr***ment? _

'_Was I thinking aloud? Gotta make a note to not do that again.'_

"Yes, really," Ainz straightened his back and reverted to his regal tone in an attempt to recover from his mind drifting off, "It's like… like a child taking after her mother," he dropped a what-he-hoped was a profound statement, "Just make sure to not take after her impulsiveness," he hastily appended, not wanting the supremely capable Overseer to become a clone of Tia.

He didn't notice how Albedo had lowered her head so her hair was hiding her face.

"Thank you, Ainz-sama," a slight tremor had made its way to Albedo's voice. "I-If it's alright, I'm going to go p*** these reports to Aura," the Succubus hastily grabbed a few documents from her desk, making sure to keep her face hidden.

"Of course," Ainz waved his hand authoritatively, "I will take care of the rest of this then," he gestured towards a small pile that Albedo recognized to be related to Titus's research with scrolls.

"Of course, Ainz-sama. Thank you," Albedo quickly bowed before she speedwalked out of the room, gently closing the door behind her.

"Uuuuuuuu," the typically composed Overseer was now covering her face with her hands, hiding her wet eyes and furious blush from anybody who might be p***ing by. She quickly rushed to her room, swinging the door open and slamming it closed, and dived face first into her bed.

Ainz-sama had said that she looked a lot like mo—Lady Tiamat. Albedo knew that he had said it in a moment of distraction, but that made it all the more precious to her.

She knew that he had really meant it.

"Like a child taking after her mother… " Albedo muttered into a lush pillow. "If only…"

The Overseer laid there for a few more minutes before she finally got up and straightened her hair out.

"Well, no point mulling over it. I'll just have to talk with Lady Tiamat when she comes back. In the meanwhile," Albedo looked at the papers scattered across the bed, "I should probably organize these and get them to that adorable child."

With a hum and spring in her step, the Overseer left her room, smiling as she went to continue the rest of her pleasant day.

▓▒░(°◡°)░▒▓

At night she used to sleep in her parents bed like a starfish. She remembered how they used to yawn in the morning with bleary eyes, the smell of their morning breath wafting to her nose as she moaned in disgust. But the next night she would crawl in just the same and they would wrap their arms around her.

Now?

Now her mother was lying by her father's side under the dirt in the cemetery, and who was there to care for her, to be troubled about her, to wrap her body as she fell asleep?

She was alone like that small baby bird she had seen one day. The bird had fallen out of its nest with no parents around to pick it back up.

Now she was an orphan, and the only thing left to remind her of her parents was the burned under-stuffed fabric bear that her parents made for her birthday.

She could still recall that day, where the gods suddenly struck them for no reason. The burning hell fire, the flames, the sight of ash that fell from the sky as chunks of molten lava the size of carriages came crashing down, the rocks collapsing on the building as they choked on the heat.

She could still remember the heat, the pain, the sound of her own wails, the sheer _terror_.

The people from the temple who were taking care of her said that it was an attack against the country itself. The little girl didn't really remember the rest of it. They talked about some demon, but that wasn't important to her.

She didn't really care about that. Her parents were dead.

The next few weeks at the temple orphanage were a blur as she woke up by herself, ate by herself, and went to bed by herself.

She eventually made a few friends who she played and ate with, but that wasn't to last either.

One day at the orphanage while she was clutching to her bear in her room, reminiscing over better days, the Matron knocked on the door, announcing her appearance.

"Someone came to see you," the stout woman quietly called out to her.

When she opened the door, she was surprised to see a man standing next to the Matron; a sharp eyed man who seemed to be even older than her dad. His face looked like it had never laughed a single time in his entire life. His eyes were narrowed, rigid, cold, hard and she couldn't help but to draw in a sharp breath.

He looked scary. Like a monster from the stories her parents would tell her.

The man bent down. "Come child," he said, offering her his hand for her to hold, "There are things you must do."

She hesitated for a brief moment, but his authoritative voice caused her to instinctively trust him, as all children were bound to do. She slowly put her tiny, childish hand into his, cautiously wrapping her fingers around his weathered palm. He enveloped his fingers around her own small palm while her other hand clutched to her bear for dear life. Afterall, it was the only thing that made her feel safe. It was also the last thing she had left from her life with mom and dad.

She held it even tighter.

"U-umm, what's your name? Cuz my mom told me not to go with people I don't know," the flaxen-haired girl nervously stammered.

The old man looked down at the child, his stern eyes softening for a brief moment, "My name is Raymond. And I can ***ure you that I am not here to harm you. Now come child," he nodded towards the door, "Let us leave."

The two p***ed by all the wide-eyed gaping children as they made their way out of the temple orphanage. The girl stretched her neck, searching the crowd for her friends.

"Wow, is she getting a new family?" one raggedy brown haired boy with bright black eyes shouted in wonder, "When is someone gonna pick us up?"

"The time will come when the gods decide it is right," the Matron smiled sadly, lightly patting the boy's head.

The girl lowered her head. She couldn't find her friends and she had a gut feeling that the boy was wrong. The old man didn't seem like he was taking her to a new family.

Not that she wanted one.

The pair made their way through the short crowd and exited the temple. She squinted her eyes as the sun shone down on her face. The girl brought her hand up to her forehead to block out the sun and looked around her. The streets were bustling with life, but more importantly, she saw the most beautiful carriage she had ever seen in her whole entire life. She had never ridden one before.

The scary man gently lifted her into the carriage before mumbling something to the person on the horsies. Slowly, the carriage brought her away from the orphanage and towards the largest building of the country. She remembered visiting there with her parents once every year for some weird test thing.

When he exited the carriage, she did too. Where he walked, she followed.

She didn't have time to see her surroundings as she was too busy trying to keep up with the long strides of an adult.

When he stopped, she did as well.

"Remember this," he said without looking back at her, his eyes fixated on the titanic set of doors in front of them, "When you enter this door, you have to abandon everything. Your name, your identity, your past, and your future. Completely surrender yourself to the Theocracy."

She couldn't help but to look down. She was in a strange big place. She was scared, confused, and she didn't know what to do.

"From now on, your name shall be Ilona—the light to our Black Scripture—and perhaps if you are good enough, you shall be the new light of the Slane Theocracy as well."

"I-Ilona?"

"Yes."

"But...m-my name is not Ilona," she looked down at her feet and mumbled with a low voice, afraid that the adult in front of him would get angry at her.

"It is from this point on," he looked behind him and saw from the corner of his eyes that the little girl behind was trembling. Seeing this, he couldn't help but to sigh.

"I apologize," he said, softer this time, "It must be hard for you. I know it's confusing and scary, but you must heed my words. This is for your own good, Ilona. Do you understand?"

"Why?"

"You'll understand soon enough," he swiftly replied, looking at the teddy bear that she was clutching tightly to her chest, "If you want, you can keep the bear. But nothing more than that."

She nodded. The bear was the only thing she had left after all.

"Good," then without wasting too much time, he opened the door.

Ilona's eyes grew as wide as dinner plates. She had never seen a room so big and wide before. Countless tall pillars stretched across the hall for as far as the eye could see, all illuminated by bright torches that made her squint her eyes.

She continued looking around in wonder until her eyes finally fell upon someone who was standing against a pillar in the middle of the lonely room.

A petite, pale girl of black and white eyes.

She looked like a fairy, right out of the fairy tales that mom used to read her, so beautiful and delicate. Her lush hair was cleanly divided between a stark moonlit silver and an all-consuming void—her clothes following a similar color scheme.

Ilona could not look away from her.

"What do you want now, Old Man?" the pale fairy continued fiddling with a weird multicolored cube that turned and made loud clicking sounds. Ilona thought she sounded really rude. Mom would've scolded her if she ever talked like that.

"Just a small thing, Zesshi," Raymond replied with a tired smile, "I know that this might be out of your comfort zone, but could you by any chance take care of this girl?"

"Do I look like a baby-sitter, Old Man?" the silver-black girl didn't even look up from her cube, "Look for someone else."

"Zesshi," Raymond pinched the bridge of his nose, "She's from the God-kin project."

"Oh?" this time, the fairy—Zesshi, Ilona reminded herself—briefly glanced at her before shrugging, "Don't see how that's any of my business though, Gramps."

Raymond sighed, the toil of years showing themself on his face, "I came here to ask if you could train her. Perhaps she might have a bit of potential. It would be a shame if she were to squander that with a normal family."

The fairy smiled and sarcastically chuckled, "Fufun~ You know that I've never trained anyone, right?" the smile dropped off her face to be replaced with bored apathy, "Whatever, I'll p***."

"Very well," Raymond sighed for the umpteenth time, "I'll just send her to the Captain then. He's the next best thing after all."

Ilona looked back and forth between the two strangers who had suddenly intruded into her life. What did they mean by training? And God-kin and all this other grown-up stuff she didn't know about?

"Come child, let me take you to someone else," the stern man who had brought her here beckoned her towards the door.

"Wait," a clear chime sounded behind them, "You know what?" Ilona felt a light grip on her shoulders and spun around, widening her eyes at the sight of the fairy.

She didn't even hear her come up from behind.

"It gets pretty boring down here by myself. I'll take the kid off your hands, Old Man."

"What made you change your mind?" Raymond raised an eyebrow, curiosity edging into the corners of his voice.

"Didn't I tell you already, Old Man? It gets booooring down here," Zesshi drawled, "You should go clean out your ears after this."

"Maybe I will," Raymond replied with a small smile, "Thank you, Zesshi."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," the silver-black fairy turned around and walked back to the pillar she had been leaning against earlier.

"Go, Ilona," Raymond nudged her towards the pillar where Zesshi was, "Your destiny awaits."

The small child shyly walked up to the beautiful fairy. "H-Hi…"

Zesshi glanced down at her for a moment before returning her focus back to the weird multicolored cube.

Ilona's heart sank. She was going to be stuck here with this mean fairy?

"Don't be too hard on her Zesshi! Remember that she's just a kid!" Raymond yelled out from the doors of the Inner Sanctum.

"Okay, okay! Just get out of here already, Old Man!" Zesshi shouted back in annoyance as Raymond closed the m***ive doors behind him.

Silence permeated the still air of the Sanctum.

Ilona awkwardly sat down—criss-cross apple cross like her mom would always say—next to Zesshi.

A few tense minutes p***ed by before Ilona finally gathered the courage to say something. "U-um, the grandpa who brought me here said that you were going to train me o-or something…?"

The fairy continued twisting the rainbow cube as she replied in a lackluster tone, "Yeah, yeah, we'll do training."

"Oh, okay…" Ilona slumped against the pillar. She was hungry.

"Hungry, kid?" Ilona looked up in amazement and saw that Zesshi was holding out an apple for her. The annoying cube was nowhere to be seen.

"Ohhhhhh….." Ilona's shoulders drooped even lower.

"What is it, kid?" Zesshi tilted her head.

"It's not peeled…"

Zesshi's right eye twitched, "Listen here you little ***. I'm offering you my favorite food, and you have the nerve to tell me that it's not peeled? Well, if you want it peeled so bad—"

"You just said a bad word!" Ilona's hands shot to her mouth.

"Blah, blah, blah," The fairy threw the apple into the air, her right arm flickering before the apple suddenly burst into a clear mist, "Oops, my hand slipped. The apple is gone now. You're hungry? Too bad," she gave the kid a middle finger.

"That's a dirty gesture! My dad says people who use that finger should be spanked!"

"Oh no, I'm gonna get spanked, boo hoo," Zesshi rolled her eyes as she replied monotonically, "Welp, too bad kid, but your mommy and daddy are dead."

Ilona started whimpering, "You're not a fairy! You're just a big meanie!"

"*** you."

* * *

**Canon Omake: Torangealit (Part II)**

Two beings of incredible might stepped out of a mystical gate into a peaceful forest grove.

"Okay," Tiamat turned around to look at Torangealit, "So since we're about to enter this small village, I'm going to need you to be on your best behavior, 'kay?"

Torengalit nodded somberly.

"But firstly, there is somewhere we need to be," she smiled mischievously.

* * *

Today was just like any other day, or so they thought.

After that night's special guest, the Silver Priestess, had left, the whole inn had been bursting with activity.

"What should we do with the sheets? Should we sell them?!" one of the inn's personnel asked the innkeeper.

"Of course we should!" a waitress shouted at him.

"No, we don't. We can just rent the room as a special room from this point onward," the innkeeper replied sternly.

"Nonono, you don't understand. There's a lot of perverts who would want this bed sheet, she slept on this for crying out loud! This will be worth a fortune!"

"Aren't you the pervert?"

"You rascal! I should—"

Two knocks sounded at the door, and all heads immediately turned towards the shabby entrance.

"Excuse me," a familiar muffled feminine voice filtered through. They were pretty sure they knew whose voice it was.

A head peeked in through the door, accompanied with silver strands of hair.

Knowing whose voice it was didn't make it any less shocking though.

"S-Silver Priestess!" the man who had been trying to sell her bed sheets stuttered. He didn't expect that the person who he was talking about would appear in front of him, especially while he was holding the bed sheet that she had slept on before.

Awkwardly, he tried to hide the bedsheet behind him.

The innkeeper calmly approached the woman, "Can we help you?"

"Ah, hello!" she greeted them, "Do you remember the drunk guy from a few days ago?"

The innkeeper folded his arms across his chest, "You have to be more specific than that. There are lots of people who come into this inn to get drunk."

"The guy who talked with me? Jeffrey?"

A wave of realization came to the innkeeper, "Geoffrey? Yes, I remember."

"Can you tell me his address?" she asked nonchalantly, giving a casual smile as she did so.

"Why would you need his address?" the innkeeper asked warily.

"Well...it's a secret, but it could get a little violent I suppose," she said cheerfully with an even brighter smile, her fingers interlaced as she held her hands in front of her.

The same thought crossed the minds of every employee at the inn.

'_She's going to kill him!'_

The man who was holding the bedsheet gulped in fear.

"His house is located near the mountain, after the pine trees! Red roof!" he blurted out, wanting to get the Priestess as far away from here as possible. He didn't want to get involved with her anymore; if she was going to kill that drunk pervert, what was she going to do to him, who was holding her used bed sheets?

"I see! Thank you very much!" she bowed, and left the inn, closing the door behind her.

The man exhaled a sigh of relief, knowing that the Priestess was no longer there. He turned back to the rest of his colleagues, trying to convince them to support his genius idea.

"So, with the bedsheets, I think we should still sell them and—"

"Oi, mate…"

"Don't you think it's best if we did so? We could divide the money among ourselves."

"Dude, stop—"

"What? You're in on it too right?"

"No... B-Behind you…"

"_Haa?_"

The man snapped his head around, and with that, he saw the pure smile of the Priestess behind him. He hadn't even heard her come back in or even the sound of her footsteps against the rickety wooden floorboards.

He shivered in fear.

"S-Silver Priestess?!"

"Hello, again," she gave a strained smile, veins pulsing on her head as she tried to hold off her anger. She may be smiling, but they could sense that she was very, very angry.

"It's not what you think it is, I—"

Tiamat snatched the bedsheets from his hand, threw it out of the window, and launched a spell that burned it with a conjured flame. The white bedsheet was quickly burnt to ashes under the brunt of the otherworldly flames and scattered to the winds, never to be seen again.

"Here's the money to replace the bedsheet. Please buy a better one, m'kay?" she firmly placed a silver coin in the innkeeper's hand and left.

The man who had been insisting on selling the bedsheets could only kneel down in pain and regret, "The bedsheet...the precious bedsheet…"

The innkeeper scoffed at him, "That's what you get for being a pervert."

* * *

Geoffrey rolled on his bed and fell face first on the ground.

He groaned as he rubbed his crusty eyes, idly noticing that the house was swaying like a reflection on a stormy lake.

His breath was the underlying cause of the scent of alcohol that was entering his nostrils and his mouth was sore from the amount of alcohol that he poured down his throat.

Well, he was used to it at this point anyways.

He cleared his throat as he stood up, spitting a blob of phlegm onto the filthy ground, staggering to the couch as he fell down on it.

Goffrey sighed. Alcohol had taken so much of a toll on him, making him look a lot older than his true age. Years of drinking had robbed him of his youth, and he had no desire to stop anytime soon.

It was already late afternoon. The noon-day sun was filtering through the curtains, and he basked in the sense of emptiness that his house provided. Quiet and serene, just the way he liked it.

Or empty and dead.

His eyes slowly turned smaller and smaller as his focus slowly diminished. After five minutes of not moving, he drifted into unconsciousness, and then jolted awake again. To him, the world was a blur of colors with random images floating aimlessly around in the muddled pool of his thoughts.

After a few seconds, he was once again lost to his drowsiness.

That was until his ears were blasted with the sound of roaring wind as furious as a hurricane.

"Geoffrey, come out!" someone shouted outside of his shack, ruining all the peace and quiet, the only things that he had.

Instantly, he sobered up, walking quickly towards his door to see what was causing such a m***ive disturbance. Was it really a hurricane? It couldn't be. Wasn't it sunny just a moment ago?

He quickly opened the door, and his jaw dropped open.

"Geoffrey! I brought you a gift!" a person waved happily.

A person who was shouting in front of his sad excuse of a house in the middle of nowhere.

A person who was sitting on top of a mighty blue and white Dragon.

The Silver Priestess.

The Silver Priestess who was sitting on top of a Frost Dragon, who he had har***ed a few days ago, was telling him that she had brought him a gift.

"Why are you here?!" Geoffrey screamed in fear, his voice swallowed by the loud flapping of the Dragon's wings, "No way... are you here to kill me?!" he speculated. He pointed his finger at her, "You're just as bad as all those other so called heroes!"

The Priestess laughed, "No, silly! I told you I brought a gift."

Slowly, the Frost Dragon landed on the ground in front of his house, snapping all the trees to make some space for itself.

"Gift? What gift?" the drunken man asked, curious, intrigued, and annoyed.

The Priestess jumped down, "Can't you see it?"

"What?" he replied snarkily.

"It's right in front of you though."

His incredulous eyes landed on the Dragon in front of him.

"What the ***? Are you insane?"

"Nope, I'm perfectly healthy," the Priestess smiled at him. "Thank you for asking though."

"You're gifting me a...Frost Dragon?"

"Yeap!" Tiamat nodded happily, "You did ask for it~"

Geoffrey tried to recall his memories from a few days ago, and a sharp intake of breath followed by a painful nudge to his head reminded him of what he had said to the Priestess.

"_I bet if I had a dragon, I could easily become an Adamantite adventurer too!"_

"No…" he clutched his head, "Nononononononononononono…"

"Well you can take him, he's tamed already. Honestly, he's too much of a h***le to take care of, especially since I have to take care of a bunch of others. You just have to feed him one cow per day, remember that, okay?" she reminded him as she opened a rift in reality.

"O-One cow…" his jaw dropped even more, "There's no way I could afford a cow you stinkin' piece of ***!"

Sadly, his words fell on deaf ears, "Good luck! I look forward to working with you in the future! I'm sure you'll be a great adventurer!"

"Bitch, no. Take him back!"

"Thank you for helping me with this problem~" the Priestess put one foot through the portal

"No, hey! Come back you—"

But she had already left, the purple rift closing behind her as she did.

Geoffrey could only look at the dragon awkwardly.

The dirt brown eyes of a drunken man stared in awe at how blue the eyes of a Frost Dragon could be. Just like a frozen lake in winter, it was a mesmerizing sight to behold.

The dragon sighed, his cold breath freezing the gr*** around them, "For her to give me to a lowly drunken human man, how _ridiculous_," he scoffed.

"Y-You t-talk?"

"Of course I am, you filthy creature of low intelligence!"

At this, the drunken Geoffrey found himself filled with rage. He didn't ask for this! Well, he did, but he was drunk! What right did this Dragon think he had to talk down to him like that!

"Watch your mouth, you fat-*** lizard!"

"What did you say, you hairless monkey?!"

And thus was the beginning of an awkward relationship that would last a lifetime.

* * *

Tiamat stretched, her entire body stiff from the busy day she had. She stood on her tiptoes, shoulders straining, and felt the luxury of her tensing muscles.

Suddenly, Ainz teleported into the office. Greeted with the sight of his _beauti_—tired friend letting out little grunts as she unintentionally emphasized her more feminine ***ets.

But before his thoughts could go any further, a green aura washed over him, and he clicked his tongue at the lost sensation.

"Tia," Ainz called out to her, "Where have you been?"

The Dragoness lifted her hand high to the sky as if she was reaching for the ceiling, waiting for her muscles to loosen up, "I just delivered a gift to someone. Why? Do you need me for something?" a curious expression blooming on her face as she continued stretching.

"Well, it doesn't matter since you're here anyways. But I need the Frost Dragons for a project."

Tiamat flinched.

"A-All of them?" she asked in a small voice.

"Yes, all of them." Ainz replied with the utmost certainty, his red eyes flaring outwards.

Tiamat slowly lowered her hand and looked down at the carpeted floor.

Instantly, Ainz knew something was wrong.

"Tia," he sighed, clutching his head as a mild headache blossomed in his skull, "What did you do this time?"

"_Ijustgaveoneaway_," she mumbled quickly, not wanting to look him in the eye.

"What?"

"I just gave one away…" she said a bit louder this time.

"_What?_"

"_Eep!_ Pleasedon'tscoldme!"

Ainz face palmed, "Who…"

"I met a guy who said he could be an adventurer if I gave him a dragon," she folded her hands in front of her as she stared at her lap.

"Then are you going to give everyone a dragon if they asked for one, _hmmm?_"

"Waaaa, I'm sorry! B-But they were a h***le to take care of. The Frost Dragons ate a lot and, and…"

Ainz sighed and he put his hand up to stop her from uttering more nonsense, "If you needed help with taking care of them, you could've just come to me…Next time, don't make big decisions like this without telling me first."

"Okay," she pouted, "Sorry…"

"It's fine. Besides, it's only one dragon right?" Ainz confirmed, desperately hoping his friend had at least _some _common sense, "_Right?_"

"Y-Yes, I only gave out one! There's two Frost Dragons left."

"Alright, now come," he ordered.

"Where?" Tiamat trembled, worried that he had some terrible punishment in mind.

"The kitchen of course. I'm craving that food you cooked, the ramen. You'll cook it for me, right?"

Tiamat immediately brightened up, "Yes! I'll cook it, I'll cook it!"

"Good."

It was super easy to cheer her up.

* * *

**Non-canon Omake: OK Boomer**

"Wait," a clear chime sounded behind them, "You know what?" Ilona felt a light grip on her shoulders and spun around, widening her eyes at the sight of the fairy.

She didn't even hear her come up from behind.

"It gets pretty boring down here by myself. I'll take the kid off your hands."

"What made you change your mind?" Raymond raised an eyebrow, curiosity edging into the corners of his voice.

"Didn't I tell you already, boomer? It gets booooring down here," Zesshi drawled, "You should go clean out your ears after this."

"Excuse me?"

"Gods, you're such a boomer."

"You Gen-Zs are lazy and useless. What problems have Gen-Zs solved? That's right, _nothing_. You techno-holics piece of ***s with your *** cubes. Back in my day—"

"Ok boomer."

* * *

**A/N: Who is Ilona? Remember that girl from chapter 16? That's her.**

**Hackslashbash: Yes, we are aware of the universal translator thing going on, but the German schtick is just too good of a gag to give up on. ALL OMAKES ARE CANON UNLESS STATED OTHERWISE.**

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Discord: 'Tiamat: The Goddess of Dragons' Discord Link: **H**elmeted **T**yrant **T**rounces **P**easant **S**od (**colon) (slash) (slash) ****d**evious **i**nventor **s**parks **c**reation **o**n**r**ejected **d**evices** . gg (slash) JUejk8J**


	29. Chapter 29: A Resolve for Two

**(edit: 21 May 2020) A/N: My apologies to **Ok Boomer **and **Mintdesco **for being so forgetful. However, you guys are in for a treat since both had won the competitions on our Tiamat fanfic discord (omake and fanart respectively). As promised, the winner of the omake competition will have their personal omake published on the site and the fanart will be used for both the discord and fanfiction profile picture. Once again, big congratulations to both of you guys!**

* * *

Omake by Ok Boomer

**Protecting Tiamat**

* * *

In the shadows he worked, to serve the light. That was his job, to loom in the shadows, protecting his Goddess from any danger that should ever befall her. He was her personal servant, Shroud, a name his Lady had so graciously given him. He would protect her from anything, that was his singular purpose, until should he take his final breath.

Shroud was proud to serve the Supreme Beings, and he was grateful that his Lady and Lord Ainz had stayed behind with them. He was created to serve, to kill, to die for the Supreme Ones, and that was what he intended to do. For now though, he was to watch over his dearest Lady, the one who rules all of Nazarick, Tiamat, the Goddess of Dragons. So great was she, it fulfilled him to even bask in her presence.

Suddenly, a yawn! His Lady had woken up! It warmed his heart to bask in her beautiful arua, one that shined brighter than the sun. "Good morning, Lady Tiamat," he said, as he bowed to the Supreme One. "Good morning," Tiamat said. "Can you go out of the room as I get ready?"

"Of course my Lady, shall the need arise I shall be right there."

Shroud tranmugated into an inconspicuous spider, to attract attention away from himself, should the need come for him to strike from the shadows. He so wanted to kill any humans that had the nerve to so much come near his Lady. Oh, how he desired to shoo away those pests. But his Lady, in her everlasting compassion, had so kindly allowed these lower life forms to tread in her area. And he would heed her every command.

So, Shroud crept into a dark corner near the door of his Lady's room. He vigilantly watched for any threats that might spring up. Luckily, none came as Lady Tiamat exited her room. Shroud saw that she was wearing a stunning dress for once, that furthered her already outstanding beauty. He remembered that she was attending a human noble's party. He was disgusted by this notion, as some ant DARED to take her precious time. He wished she was back at Nazarick, their home, where it was much safer and more defendable. Nevertheless, he would accompany his Goddess anywhere she chose to go.

Shroud followed his Lady downstairs, where everyone at the inn greeted her.

"Good morning, Silver Priestess!"

"Have a great day, Priestess-sama!"

"Good Morning, everyone!" his Lady said with a beaming smile.

Shroud brandished his blades, preparing to kill these lesser beings who dared to speak out of turn. Suddenly he received a [Message] from his Lady! "Shroud stand down!," she said. "But they-!" "No buts! They didn't do anything wrong!" "Your wish is my command, my Lady." Shroud didn't understand how she could be so kind at times, but it was not his place to resist the will of the Supreme Beings.

Shroud continued to follow his lady out of the Establishment, and onto the dusty stone road. Human cities were always so dirty. Shroud jumped from roof to roof, following his lady all the way to E-Rantel's east gate. It was there that a guard waved her over from the front of the line to exit the city.

"Over here, Priestess-sama!" the guard called over.

"Thank you," Tiamat replied.

Shroud frowned. A human dare yell at one of the most exalted of beings? YetOnce his master was out of earsight, Shroud revealed himself again.

"May I ask where we are going, my Lady?" he said.

"Oh, Shroud, I didn't know you were still following me!" she replied.

"Forgive me my Lady, but Lord Ainz instructed me to protect you wherever you may decide to travel," he responded. "I am here only to serve, and if it pleases you I will even sacrifice my life in service to the Supreme Ones."

"Gosh, no, don't do that! You're very precious to me Shroud!" Tiamat said.

"Thank you my lady, I will continue to serve to my full capacity!" Shroud responded.

Just then, Pentakrisis stepped out of a [Gate]. "Greetings Shroud. And hello Master!" Pentakrisis bounded up to Tiamat like an energetic puppy.

"Taki! How have you been? Ohmycuteadorablelittlebaby!" Tiamat energetically yelped as she pounced on Pentakrisis and hugged him.

Shroud looked down. He wishes his Lady would do that to him too. However, it was not his place.

Suddenly, Lady Tiamat gestured to him!

"You too Shroud! Come on, group hug!" she shouted with a beaming smile.

Shroud eagerly jumped at the chance. He wished the moment would have lasted forever. He felt so elated! However, that had that filthy human's party to attend.

Tiamat climbed on to Pentakrisis' back with Shroud following as he casted [Invisibility] on himself. Shroud hated flying- it was cold and there were no dark spots to hide- but he withstood it for his Lady. Now that he thought about it, he never asked what the party was about. "Lady Tiamat, what is the reason you are attending this pig's party?"

"Oh Shroud, it's party I got invited to by the request of Blue Rose. If I didn't attend I would look bad in front of fellow adventurers, and if I want to keep this persona, I need to have friendly relations with fellow adamantite adventurers." Tiamat calmly explained.

"As expected of my Lady, your wisdom is unparalleled," Shroud said.

"No need for that Shroud, we're all family!" Tiamat said sarcastically.

"As a Supreme Being, I cannot heed your request. Forgive me Lady Tiamat, but there is a bare minimum to how you are spoken to." Shroud said. He was deeply ashamed of himself, not being able to obey her command.

"It's okay Shroud, thanks for that!" Tiamat replied as she gave Shroud a grin.

"Your thanks is wasted on me, my Lady. Your kindness is revered throughout all of Nazarick." Shroud said as he bowed deeply to the Supreme One.

"Now as for the reason for the party itself, now that eludes even me," Tiamat stated.

Before they could spare any more conversation, the noble's mansion started to break from the clouds, offering Shroud the amazing view of the land below them, from way up high.

* * *

Christina Tora Richelieu Aindra, secondborn daughter of the Noble House of Aindra, was excited for today. For today you see, was her 14th birthday, which marked her as an official member of the House. This also marked the date of her introduction ceremony, which also introduced her to potential suitors in person.

In the Kingdom of Re-Estize, children born all the way from commoners to royals had a high mortality rate. Either from malnutrition, disease, or other causes, it was a serious problem for not just the Kingdom of Re-Estize, but all human nations. Existing in a medieval world with dangerous monsters and no modern medicine wasn't the best combination for a human child. If you were lucky, you were born into the Slane Theocracy which had decent healing magic, but even the Theocracy had its problems.

Now you see, Nobles had less of a problem with malnutrition, but they still had a problem from disease, other scheming Nobles, or monsters who didn't care who you were. Many noble houses had lost a lot of official members to child mortality. To combat this, the Kingdom had a law where a child born into a Noble house wouldn't be considered an official member until they were 14 years of age, marking them both an adult and an official member of Noble House. This was to ensure that the children that survived through childhood would be worthy enough to carry the name of the house, and also lessened the number of official nobles, which resulted in less deaths and less scheming among members of noble houses.

Christina was thrilled to finally enter the house and fully claim the title of a noble. It was thanks to their House's Guardian that she had survived this long, so she offered a quick thanks before her servants started preparing her for the ceremony. She wondered who she'd meet there. Oh that's right, her cousin was coming! She'd long looked up to her older cousin who now led the famous Adamantine Adventurer group Blue Rose. She couldn't wait to see her! Speaking of, she had gotten word from her servants that they had invited the Silver Priestess too! She couldn't wait!

* * *

As soon as Tiamat saw the mansion, she ordered Taki to go down to the entrance of the mansion. What caught Shroud off guard though, was that Taki took this with ruthless efficiency. When he received the order, he immediately darted down to the surface, which scared Shroud so much that he almost passed out.

Shroud glared at the doofus dragon who startled him so much. He could sense that the big dragon didn't care though.

As soon as they landed, some humans started to approach them. Shroud began to prepare for a scuffle, it was unusual for humans to approach such a mighty creature like a dragon so readily. This was suspicious!

Tiamat then calmed Shroud down. "Don't worry, that's just Blue Rose. They were the ones who invited us, for goodness sake!"

Shroud put away his weapons and slipped into the shadows as he heeded his Lady's request. "Yes, my Lady."

Shroud examined these so-called "strong" adventurers. They were human for one, so minus points there. Not that Shroud ever expected anything good out of humans, they were all disappointments. He silently cast [Appraisal] on Blue Rose. Weak, except for the one in the red robe with the mask. Shroud could sense negative energy emanating from her. She could pose a decent threat. He would keep an eye on her.

Next, his 8 eyes moved to the big lady in red armour, if she could be called that. Level 29. Shroud smirked. This thing was their tank? Puny humans. Granted, she had the size of a tank, she was bigger than Shroud, but in terms of strength she was grossly imcompetent in the eyes of our favorite 8 legged friend.

Moving forwards, his eyes drifted to what appeared to be twins dressed in very peculiar outfits. They appeared to be assassins, judging from the way they were dressed and the weapons they were carrying. Yes, he could very well see them. They were well hidden, but as an assassin himself of higher caliber, it was so easy to find them, it was like he was taking flesh from a baby imp.

Finally, he focused his attention on what appeared to be the leader of the party, who had the gall to approach his supreme master.

He let his bloodlust seep for a minute. Tina, who was the closest to Shroud and an assassin who specialized in stealth and detection, immediately felt it and alertly looked around the room. Shroud cursed in his mind. He had made a rookie mistake, not concealing his killing intent. He quickly calmed himself down and masked his presence again, like the true professional he carried himself out to be, serving the most Supreme of all entities.

Tiamat noticed Tina looking around. "Is everything alright?" she asked.

Tina, finally thinking it was her imagination, responded, "No, it's nothing, I thought I felt extreme hostility for a minute, must've been nothing."

Tiamat, realizing who it was, immediately used [Message] to contact Shroud. "Shroud! Don't cause any trouble!" Surprised and ashamed that his master had so suddenly caught on, he apologized. "Please forgive me, Lady Tiamat. It won't happen again."

Shroud chastised himself. How could he have been so careless? Nevertheless, he pressed forward. His enemies would not wait, and he wouldn't either.

Tiamat assured Tina, saying that everything was alright. "Tina, if there was anything amiss, I'm certain I would've sensed it as well."

"Of course Hannah-san, I'm certain as well. It was just my mind playing fickle tricks on me." Tina said.

Inwardly, Tia sighed in relief. They didn't suspect a thing! Those acting classes from Albedo really paid off. She would have to bake her treats sometime. "Hmm, maybe a cheesecake?"

Shroud reevaluated the situation. While Blue Rose didn't seem to think there was anything amiss, other parties might've catched on. He didn't sense anyone strong or powerful at this event, but it was always good to make sure. He casted Widen Magic: [Danger Sense]. This spell was particularly suited to the assassin's toolkit, as it identified threats between the parameters set by the caster, and therefore was very flexible and reliable in a lot of situations. As an added bonus, it also heightened the caster's senses to their surroundings. In this case, he casted it to identify entities levels in the 50-80 range, and the response he got confirmed his suspicions. There was a powerful creature here! It might've caught on to his presence...that would not be ideal. Other than the masked magic caster he sized up earlier, there was some sort of threat that loomed. He estimated it to be around Level 60ish. Nothing his lady couldn't handle, but something that could disrupt the security of the Supreme One! This could not be allowed to stand.

He sent a quick [Message] spell to his Lady. "Lady Tiamat-sama, I have just detected a near Level 60 entity that could pose a challenge. May I proceed to engage it?"

Tiamat was surprised at the sudden message, but she already felt the presence. It didn't seem to omit any hostile intent, but it was never bad to be cautious. She shot a [Message] to Shroud. "Don't attack, but collect more information about it. Gauge what it's intentions are, and pull back if it attacks. Try to establish friendly relations with it. For now, I'm going to interact with the humans at this ceremony. If something pops up [Message] me."

Shroud got the message. He would follow orders, like a good creation of Nazarick he was created to be. He responded with a [Message]. "Yes, my Lord" (Code Geass, anyone?)

The aura that emanated from the thing, or whatever it was, seemed to be coming from the center of the lake that was right next to the noble estate. There was a small island in the middle, so that's likely where it was residing. Shroud went to investigate.

The problem that faced Shroud first was how to get across the lake. He could easily get across by skipping on the water to the island, using the agility he natural agility his species had. Unfortunately, that might attract the attention of whatever was on the island and the humans. Water suddenly bursting into the air in a path seemed unnatural. Shroud would have to use outside resources for this one. He quickly sent a [Message] to Lady Tiamat. "I'm terribly sorry my Lady to be a hindrance like this, but can I borrow a magical item with the flight spell?"

Tiamat responded saying, "Sure! Give me a minute."

Tiamat excused herself suddenly, saying that she needed to go use the refresher. Once she was out of eyesight, she quickly casted a [Gate] portal to take her to Shroud. Once there, she pulled out the Wings of Valkyrie from her inventory, a magical item which increased not only the user's strength and mobility, but also allowed them to fly without any mana cost, like they had a racial level which allowed them to fly. To her, it was a trash item. To Shroud however, it was the personal belonging of a Supreme One, to be treated with the utmost of care.

Shroud quickly thanked his Lady before she left to go back to the human's event. He didn't have time to waste! He quickly equipped the Wings of Valkyrie, and darted towards the Island after he casted [Invisibility] and [Sensory Protection] on himself. He needed to be as stealthy as possible.

Shroud landed on the island safely without anyone noticing. When he glanced one last time at the ceremony, Tiamat gave him one last thumbs up before going in.

* * *

Tiamat was currently making connections in the reception before the ceremony. When Shroud had asked for her assistance, she had gone to his aid, but now she was busy. She had talked to adventurers, nobles, knights, and wealthy merchants who had relation to the Aindria family. To be honest, it was a little tiring for her. She had to keep up her Silver Priestess persona in front of many different individuals, and it was wearing her mind out, even with her draconic fortitude. She was currently talking to a young noble named Aire Hilant Lezord Orisarz, who was the owner of the lands next to the Aindra domain. He was currently trying to recruit her, and she was trying to get out of the conversation.

"Hannah-san, I'm sure we could come to a fruitful agreement, if you agree to become my subordinate. With my influence and your dragon, we could accomplish much!"

Tiamat internally cringed. She had gone through this many times before, many nobles had tried to get her for her looks and dragon. She was tired of shutting down the never ending onslaught. "I'm sorry Aire-san, but a tenant of my faith is to serve only the Dragon Goddess herself, and as such I cannot accept your offer. I am deeply sorry."

She could see his face stiffen up. This was her chance to escape from the conversation! "Now if you excuse me, I have other things to do!" She quickly walked away from him.

"Please wait, Hannah-sama! We can surely come to an arrangement!"

She sped up her walking and pretended not to hear him. Suddenly, she ran into a girl! "Oh I'm so sorry for running into you, please forgive me!" Tiamat apologized as she extended her hand to the girl.

The girl looked up to her, and suddenly Tiamat could see that her eyes started to gleam. "Oh my goodness, I can't believe I get to meet the Silver Priestess! Thank you for picking me up, and I forgive you. My name is Chirstina Tora Richeliu Aindra, and thanks again for coming to my ceremony."

Tiamat realized that this girl was what the whole event was about. "Oh, it's nice to meet you too! And congratulations on your entry into the House!'

"Oh thank you, it is nice to hear that from someone as great as you! Here, come into this private room so we can speak more! I would love to opportunity to get to know you better!"

Seeing as she had no other choice, she reluctantly followed the girl into the room. She hoped she could get to Nazarick as soon as possible…She wondered what Shroud was doing?

* * *

Shroud was currently searching for the powerful being that could be a threat to his Lady. He had scanned about half of the island already, and he was beginning to become inpatient. If it could be a threat then it had to be eliminated now! Suddenly, he felt it! The formidable presence, one that could cause him grief! He felt chills. It probably had noticed him…

"Who goes, the one that intrudes on my territory? Why dare come, if you can sense my power?"

Shroud laughed. "You may be strong, but you can never measure up to the Supreme Beings. I may be weaker than you, but they are the strongest in existence."

"Ho? And who are these so-called "Supreme Beings?"

Now Shroud was getting annoyed with whoever this was. "They are the wisest, strongest, and most powerful of anyone in existence. They aren't so-called that, they deserve the moniker, because they are. They cannot be addressed any lower."

"Then I want them nowhere near me. I do not desire having to fight strong opponents, for it may lead to my downfall. Although, if anyone were to lay a hand on me or my house that I protect, I would be forced into action…"

Shroud saw an opportunity to settle this without fighting. After all, if there is no need to expend resources to fight, then why should you? "I have come here on my Lady's behalf, and she does not wish to fight you. However, if you were to become a threat, she ordered me here and now to retreat. Even if I don't make it, they will eliminate you with all of Nazarick's fury. So I am offering you an opportunity. Ally with us, and we will not harm you or interfere with your house. And in return, you and your house will cooperate with us should we ever need it. Do we have an alliance?"

"Hmm...that does sound appealing. However, how am I supposed to know if you are trustworthy? And I do not know the power of your superiors yet!"

Shroud gritted in annoyance. "Look over there, at that human's party! Focus on the Silver Haired Lady! Can you not feel the raw power emanating from her? That alone is all the proof you need! If need be, she also controls the dragon that you saw fly here!"

"A Dragon?!"

Shroud grinned. "Yes, exactly that! A Dragon, the most fearsome of creatures to exist! Now again, will you accept our deal, or be cleaned?" Shroud could feel the creature pondering it's slim choices.

"Hmph! Very well, I will heed your request. However, if you ever break your agreement, consider it done!"

"Very good. Now, I shall take my leave. Do not interfere with the ceremony or my Lady. That is all, farewell."

"Please leave as soon as possible!"

Shroud flared in annoyance. That creature was so stifling! How dare he not want to be in the presence of a Supreme One? Still he heeded his master's orders to not engage. He equipped the Wings of Valkyrie and left the island.

Tiamat was currently attending the ceremony, and they were in the initiation part. Christna had begun to walk towards the house leader to be inducted. Tiamat still didn't truly know how the human nobles worked, but she nonetheless watched with great interest.

"Christna Tora Richeliu Aindra, do you swear to uphold the values, traditions, and prestige of the House of Aindra?"

"Yes, for I, Chirstna Tora Richeliu Aindra, swear today and furthermore to bring the House of Aindra to glory!"

"Very well! On this day, I, Aruth Delo Intera Aindra, head of the House of Aindra, pronounce you a member of the House! Do not disappoint us, and withhold the house's honor!"

"Yes!"

The crowd clapped politely, and a few cheers rang out, most likely to curry favor with the head of the house. Tiamat herself gave a nicely paced clap, befitting of her status. She still found human politics to be interesting, not that she got politics even when she was still human. Now that the ceremony was over, she could get back to Nazarick and bake! Oh right, what would she bake for Albedo as a treat for her hard work? Cupcakes? Muffins? No, a pie would do it!

As the congregation got up and started to file out, Tiamat made sure to give respects to both the head of the house as well as Christna, and thanked Lakyus for the invitation. She then paid the dues to the House's Guardian, and then strode out into the field.

Shroud then came up to her. "Did you enjoy yourself, my Lady?"

"To be honest Shroud, it was tiring, but I had to go to uphold my Persona. But let's go home, back to Nazarick!"

Shroud beamed. He had feared that Lady Tiamat had like these filthy human's places more than Nazarick, and would leave them, but that didn't seem like the case. She would still stay with them! It made his cold spider heart feel warmer. "Yes my Lady, exactly as you say!"

* * *

Momonga looked up from his desk as Tiamat burst into his office, again. "Did you have fun at the human event, Tia?"

"It was tiring, and I'm much glader to be here in Nazarick now. Momonga, don't tire yourself out now!" She teased.

Momonga visibly annoyed, said "Oh? If you lighten my workload, then maybe it won't be as tiring."

Tiamat visibly flinched at that. "Well, it was nice talking to you! Now I need to go bake-"

"Here you go!" Momonga said as he handed her a stack.

"Nuuuuuuuu!" Tiamat cried as she knew she would be stuck for awhile.

Shroud smiled at the Supreme Ones as he observed. It seemed like they were not going to leave anytime soon. He just hoped that his Lady wouldn't attend another human's ceremony again. It was quite troublesome to deal with. But now, he pressed onward, defending his Lady till his last breath! Glory to Lord Momonga! Glory to Lady Tiamat! Glory to The Great Tomb of Nazarick! And finally, Glory to Ainz Ooal Gown!

* * *

**A/N: Thank you Razel Treasure, Amaya, Harish, and Yanlin for editing this chapter 3**

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* * *

**Chapter 29: A Resolve for Two**

* * *

Tsuare slowly opened her eyes.

'_The ceiling looks nice…'_

Her eyes widened, and she immediately shot up out of the _heavenly _bed. Where was she?

Her heart raced as it pounded against her ribcage. Adrenaline pumped through her veins as she looked around her in panic. Was she in the house of yet another depraved noble?

Her body involuntarily shuddered as it subconsciously prepared itself for what it knew would happen next.

After a few minutes, she managed to calm down enough to breathe normally and properly take in her surroundings. Outside, it was a wonderful sunny day with a herd of puffy white clouds lazily drifting across the azure sky.

Inside, she was in a fancy bedroom—the most beautiful room she had ever seen—decorated with a beautiful chandelier that glowed with a warm yellow gleam, and a big window where she could see the trees and the skies and a few more besides. Every wall was covered with what seemed to be expensive wallpaper, and the room was decorated with a multitude of intricately crafted items she had never seen before.

Tsuare had spent so much time in the dark, cramped, room, that she was unaccustomed to her new bright surroundings.

How long had it been since she had last seen the blue sky? She could not recall.

Two gentle knocks came from the door, echoing in the quiet room.

Tsuare jolted in surprise, and began to curl in on herself. A few moments later, the door opened and Tsuare was greeted with the sight of a well-dressed elderly butler.

She shivered in fear.

Her hands turned paper-white as her fingers tightly clutched the bed sheet she was laying on, her breaths coming out in short gasps as her mouth dried up.

Who was this butler? Another new _client_? Someone who was about to take her to a new hell?

She had to escape. Right now!

"Ah, so you're already awake!" a female voice chimed from down the hall, light footsteps growing ever closer until an alluring woman with long red hair peeked at her with amethyst eyes from behind the butler.

Tsuare remembered her. She had seen her in her dreams while she was asleep.

The butler stepped aside respectfully, allowing the mysterious woman to walk inside the bedroom.

Tsuare couldn't help but to stare in awe.

The woman in front of her was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen. Hers was a beauty that made all of the girls back in that _place_ look mediocre by comparison. Tsuare glanced at her eyes and felt an innate sense of ease. The lady exuded an aura of warmth of gentleness, and her expression was completely open with not a trace of deceit.

The heels of her flats lightly tapped against the ground as she walked towards her. The lady stopped at the side of the bed and plopped down with a flop, causing the bed to shake a bit.

"How are you feeling?" she softly asked, a strand of crimson hair escaping from behind her ear as she tilted her head.

_How did she feel?_

How long had it been since someone had asked her that?

The blond haired girl could not answer. Instead, she looked down at the bedsheets she was still grasping onto, her head stuck in her horrible past.

Knowing that she wasn't going to answer anytime soon, the red-hair woman's lips curved up in a sad smile, "By the way, I brought you something to eat. Sebas, if you would?"

"Certainly, My Lady," he nodded before bringing in a steaming bowl of what seemed to be a white soup filled with mushrooms.

The butler—Sebas, Tsuare knew now—gave the bowl of porridge to the woman sitting next to her, who then began to slowly stir the soup inside the bowl with careful motions. After a while, the woman stopped and scooped a spoonful of porridge out, gently blowing on it before facing the front of the spoon towards Tsuare.

"Here, this will warm you up."

The red haired woman waited and Tsuare's knuckles grew even paler. Was she feeding her? She could feed herself.

Right as Tsuare was about to grab the spoon from the beautiful woman, she shook her head, "That's alright, say _aahhh…_" the red-haired lady murmured patiently.

With no small amount of hesitation, Tsuare raised her head and opened her mouth. The woman carefully put the spoon in her mouth, before taking it out once its contents were all in the bedridden girl's mouth.

Tsuare chewed a little, the soft porridge not offering much resistance to her newly healed teeth, and swallowed it down. It was simple in terms of flavor, but that wasn't important to her at the moment.

'_It's warm…'_

The woman took yet another spoonful and gently blew on it again before giving it to her, and this time, Tsuare chomped on the spoon like there was no tomorrow.

"It's alright, eat slowly. The whole bowl is yours, and if you want more I can always make another portion. Right, Sebas?"

"Of course," the stoic butler replied in affirmation.

But their words fell on deaf ears.

Instead, Tsuare was stuck in the past, recalling how meal time was always, _always_ only a bit of tough, moldy bread and cold soup. Sometimes, she considered herself fortunate to even get just that.

Just when was the last time she had a proper meal?

_When was the last time the meal was warm?_

She had only eaten two spoonfuls, and yet those two bits of porridge made her feel warm and safe. So warm that Tsuare couldn't help but to begin to weep. Her chest heaved as her body was wracked with sobs, every drop of suffering she had accumulated over these long, long years gradually being wringed out of her.

Tiamat watched, her eyes pained as she gazed upon the girl who had everything taken away from her.

'_Like looking into an old mirror.'_

It was more than mere crying; it was the kind of desolate sobbing that could only come from a person who had lost all hope. The blond haired girl covered her face in shame as her wails echoed throughout the quiet room.

She struggled futilely to keep her cries silent as tears dripped between her fingers. Her breathing was ragged, gasping, as the bedsheet was slowly dotted by drops of moisture.

"It's alright…" Tsuare could barely register the woman talking, "You're safe now."

And so after a long time, Tsuare cried.

She cried and cried until no more tears came, leaving behind nothing but emptiness and a strange feeling of resolution.

She cried until dusk to the first light of the next day, before she finally fell asleep from exhaustion, the two strangers accompanying her all the while.

After what felt like hours and the girl's crying having died down to the occasional sniffle, Tiamat finally spoke, "Sebas, could you heat the porridge again for me? It's gotten cold, I think."

"Of course—"

Tiamat passed the bowl to Sebas, but before he could take it from her, the girl suddenly screamed.

"No!"

Tiamat couldn't help but to jolt. To say that the scream surprised her would be an obvious fact. If it was not for her enhanced reflexes, the contents of the bowl would have spilled all over the floor.

'_That would have sucked…'_

"No?" she asked the girl as she cautiously placed the nearly spilt bowl safely on her lap.

The girl hurriedly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, and with a determined look in her puffy eyes, she stared straight at Tiamat, "Please give it to m-me."

She sounded like she was begging.

"It's alright, warm porridge is waaaay better than cold. It's only going to take a moment too," Tiamat tried to reassure the distressed girl.

"It's okay, I'll finish it!"

"B-But…"

Before Tiamat could finish her sentence, the girl leapt out of the bed to grab the bowl off of her lap and proceeded to inhale the mushroom porridge with gusto.

Tiamat gazed in awe at how the young petite girl consumed the food she had made, treating even the smallest droplet as a sacred treasure. She drained the bowl and returned it back to Tiamat.

Tsuare sighed in contentment for the first time in _ages_ and sank into the bed before her eyes suddenly shot open as she remembered something.

"T-Thank you!" she hurriedly replied in panic, hoping that the lady wouldn't be offended by her lack of manners.

"Of course! If you ever want more, ju—" the crimson woman began to respond before out of nowhere, a small sound came from the back of Tsuare's throat and out her mouth.

She had let out a small burp.

She was mortified, frozen on the spot. Tsuare couldn't believe she had let that happen in front of the beautiful woman and the stern butler. The two looked like they were nobles too, which only deepened her chagrin.

Her face turned a bright cherry red.

The woman must have been disgusted with her lack of etiquette. Tsuare didn't want to make a bad impression; she was beyond grateful that they had prepared this food for her, tended to her wounds, and most importantly, saved her from that hell hole. That was why she had wanted to finish the food in the bowl even if it had turned cold. That, and it was the best thing she had tasted in years.

Sebas, being the gentleman that he was, discreetly handed Tsuare a glass of water and took the bowl away from her.

"Do you want another bowl?" the butler asked with a much softer tone than before.

"U-Um, it's okay… I don't want to cause too much trouble for you all…" Tsuare muttered timidly as she turned her eyes away from the two kind strangers, "You've already done so much…"

"It's alright… Uhhh," the crimson haired woman scratched her head in what Tsuare would have called embarrassment if she didn't know any better. Surely, such a put-together being was beyond such petty feelings.

"I should've asked this earlier, but…" the lady continued scratching the back of her head with a sheepish look on her face as she extended an open head towards Tsuare, "What's your name?"

The girl just stared at the hand offered to her.

Tiamat sweatdropped, '_Am I being too straightforward? That's probably making her uncomfortable…'_

She awkwardly began to retract her hand, "Ah, that's okay. I'm Tiamat, by the wa—"

The blonde-haired girl grabbed Tiamat's hand with an astonishing celerity, "Tsuare. I'm Tsuare. T-Thank you, Lady Tiamat."

Tiamat's face shifted from wide-eyed surprise to a warm smile as she clasped the girl's—Tsuare's—hand between her own. "It's nice to meet you, Tsuare. If you need anything, please tell me or Sebas here," she gestured towards the butler standing behind her.

Tsuare flinched at the sudden contact. "I-I'll keep that in mind, Lady Tiamat," she said as she did her best to put on a bright smile.

The Dragoness's eyes dimmed a bit in sadness. She was fully aware of how the girl in front of her felt at the moment. Considering the trials Tsuare had been through, it was surprising that the girl was willing to talk to her at all.

'_Count your blessings, I guess…'_

"Great!" Tiamat moved a leg off the bed as she prepared to get off, "In that case, I'll let you rest for a bit. If you need me, I'm a holler away. Also, just Tiamat is good," The crimson Dragoness playfully winked in an attempt to lighten up the mood.

"Wait," right as she was about to stand up, Tsuare grabbed her hand, "I-If it isn't too much trouble…" she trailed off as if she was unsure of what to say next, "Could you stay with me a little bit longer."

Tiamat's face softened. "Of course," she swung both of her legs back onto the bed as she got herself comfortable on a pillow next to Tsuare.

"Sorry for bothering you…" the abashed girl turned her head away from her kind host. She couldn't remember the last time someone had been this patient with her.

"Hey," Tiamat playfully grinned, "I did say that if you did need anything, just ask."

"T-Thank you…" the two continued to sit there in an awkward yet comfortable silence.

A few more minutes passed before the stone-still butler took out an elegant pocket watch and glanced at it. "My Lady, I must excuse myself for now. There are some tasks that Lord Ainz have assigned to me," the butler bowed, "If either of you need anything, please call for Solution."

"Mmm, take your time, Sebas. Have a safe trip!" Tiamat waved from her lounge. Tsuare waved too, not quite sure as to what she was supposed to do.

Sebas bowed once again before he walked out the strong oaken door, gently closing behind him with a soft click as he did.

Silence filled the room once again.

"... So, is there anything you like to do?" Tiamat pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear as she tried to start a conversation.

Tsuare remained quiet. The Dragoness waited.

'_Maybe she's asleep…' _Tiamat felt tempted to poke the girl's cheeks.

Just as she worked up the nerve to pat Tsuare's face, the blonde girl suddenly responded.

"I… liked picking flowers with my sister."

"Your sister?" Tiamat pushed herself up from her lounge, straightening her back against the wooden bedrest as her expression became attentive. She hadn't expected Tsuare to open up so quickly.

"Yeah…" Tsuare quietly murmured as Tiamat saw her smile for the first time, "We would go into the forests when it was warm and just wander around for hours…"

Her eyes grew distant as she began to recall hazy memories from what seemed like a lifetime ago. "Sometimes, we would take some food for us to eat while we played there. Lucia Ninya…" Tsuare's voice faltered, "She loved eating berry jam. I would wake up at night just to find her rummaging around the pantry for more of it," she giggled as she sniffled and wiped her eyes.

"I-I miss kissing her jam-stained cheeks. I miss seeing her run around with the brightest smile in the w-world," she was having difficulty controlling her voice, her body trembling with the force of her recollections.

"I miss her," Tsuare whispered. She didn't know why she was so comfortable around this stranger—albeit, a stranger who had saved her life. For some reason, she felt like this woman beside her was a kindred spirit.

Tiamat could only look on sadly. '_She's had it really rough.'_

"H-Hey, cheer up!" the Dragoness patted the girl's back in an attempt to cheer her up, "I'm sure your sister's out there looking for you. Just wait and you'll see," she pulled the girl in for a hug, "Everything's going to turn out okay."

Tsuare wiped her nose as the last of her sniffles died out, burying herself into Tiamat's shoulder, "T-Thank you."

The two sat on the bed like that for a while, sunlight streaming through the windows to rest on the peaceful pair.

"Tiamat-sa—n?" Tsuare broke the calm silence.

"Mmm?" Tiamat sleepily responded. Her utterly relaxed position, the warm sunshine, and the companionship made it the optimal conditions for a nap.

"Why did you save me?"

Tiamat was drowsy no longer. She propped herself back up into a more awake position. "Why do you ask?"

"Well," the girl nervously pushed her index fingers against each other, "No one would care enough about someone as worthless as me—"

"_Stop,_" Tiamat grabbed her shoulders with a frightening intensity that caused Tsuare to flinch, "You're not worthless," she dropped the girl's shoulders, her voice dropping to a sober whisper, "You're not."

Tsuare couldn't help but think that the kind lady was talking to herself too.

"So don't say that you are," Tiamat hugged a pillow up against her chest.

"You're right," Tsuare quietly responded, finally looking the lady straight in the eyes, "Someone did come to save me in the end after all."

The room remained tranquil for a bit longer before the silence was broken by Tiamat this time. "Tsuare?"

"Yes, Tiamat-sa—n?"

"It may be a bit too soon to ask this, but…" Tiamat's voice faltered, "What do you plan on doing with your child?"

She expected the girl before to look at her in shock, to break down in tears again, to shut the world out as she had a few hours ago.

Tiamat did not expect her to look out the window with a calm, almost serene look in her blue eyes.

"Was it that obvious? Even I wasn't sure yet," the girl cracked a small half-hearted smile, "I guess something like this was to be expected."

Unwanted pregnancies were commonplace at the brothel. Tsuare could recall many of her coworkers having to give up their children to the orphanages while the most fortunate managed to send their children under the care of a client who had taken a liking to them.

However, not everybody was so fortunate. The specific place where she was enslaved was much more tolerant of… _deviant_ activities than anywhere else.

Tsuare's body involuntarily shuddered. She didn't want to think about it.

Truly, it was a small blessing that nothing like that had happened to her.

As Tsuare was still musing on these issues, Tiamat gently poked her in the shoulder. "Uh, I'm sorry for mentioning that… You know what? Please forget that I asked," the red-haired woman bowed her head in obvious guilt.

"A-Ah! No, please raise your head, Lady Tiamat…" Tsuare wrung her hands, "I also think that this is something I need to figure out too."

"That being said," she turned her gaze back to the outside she had finally gotten to lay her eyes upon after so long, "I don't know where to start…"

Tsuare paused for a moment, her hands unconsciously wandering down to her stomach, "Our parents died when we were young."

Tiamat nodded. She could understand the feeling of losing one's parents.

"Lucia and I… we've only had each other to rely on. And life definitely wasn't easy for us either," Tsuare continued, eyes watery yet firm as she voiced her resolve, "But life was good back then with just the two of us."

Her voice trembled as she continued speaking, "I can't say that I've always been grateful for being born. Who can, after going through that _hell?_" Tsuare forcefully wiped her eyes.

Tiamat remained silent.

"But even after all of that," Tsuare straightened her back, "I'm glad that I'm alive. I'm glad that I can see the sun again. I'm glad that I get to hear the birds chirping outside," her voice grew in strength with each sentence, "I'm glad that you and Sir Sebas saved me, Lady Tiamat."

Tsuare paused for a deep breath. "This child… _my _child… I'm going to keep it."

"Are you sure?" Tiamat stared hard at the girl, her words coming out more forceful than she intended, "Surely you want to move on from everything that happened _there?_ That child will be a constant reminder of what happened in the darkest period of your life," Tiamat panted as she caught her breath, "Are you absolutely _sure?_"

Truly, she felt like she was gazing into a mirror from the past.

Tsuare remained surprisingly calm in the face of the Dragoness's outburst. Her features were completely relaxed, as if she had accepted life in its entirety.

"Honestly, I'm not," Tsuare admitted, "But who would? All I can do is my best."

"Why…" the voice that came out from the red haired lady was so small that Tsuare almost didn't hear it.

"Why?" Tsuare repeated her question, and Tiamat nodded, "Why do I want to keep the baby?"

Tiamat once again nodded, her eyes full of uncertainty and questions.

Tsuare closed her eyes. "I hate what hasd happened to me. Even now, I'm running away from it. I hate the people there for what they did to me," she opened her eyes, "But if I let my fear and hate take over my life, over everything that I want to do… then what was the point of being saved by you? It's true that I want to escape from my past, but to push that onto a child…" Tsuare's voice trailed off as she looked out the window.

Tiamat just stared at her.

"Exactly, no one gets to choose. But _you_ can. _You_ can choose what to do with your life now without its influence. You can choose to be_ free_."

Tsuare shook her head, "Not it. A _baby_, Lady Tiamat."

"_It_," Tiamat pressed on, "_It's_ going to ask you questions you can't answer. _It's _going to haunt you for the rest of your life. When you look into _its_ eyes, you will be reminded of everything that happened to you."

"Even still, this is all I have left," Tsuare put a hand on her stomach, "And I'm not going to get rid of it."

"Tsuare—"

"I know I'm being selfish," Tsuare cut her off, "I wasn't thinking of the baby's life. But I know that if I get rid of it, I would find it harder to live. To abandon a child because of the sins of their father… I only have my sister, and I don't know even if she's still alive. This is all I have left, so please…" a small tremble made its way into her voice, "_Don't take this baby away from me…_"

Tiamat couldn't help but to grit her teeth. Couldn't she see? Her stubbornness would only cause her more pain in the end.

Just like it would have for herself.

"Fine," the Dragoness almost spat towards the girls whose watery eyes were _still full of that mocking determination_, and she stood up from the bed, having had enough of the conversation. She knew that Tsuare would not listen to anything she said. So why waste her breath?

As she was just about to turn the knob to the door, Tiamat stopped.

She couldn't leave this girl alone.

Afterall, she had been in the same spot as Tsuare. The two just happened to make different choices.

Tsuare chose to keep the baby, while Tiamat decided to let it go.

If only Tsuare knew that the option she offered was the best one.

She didn't know how it would feel to have people staring and talking behind her back. She didn't know about the venom that would flow so readily from the mouths of complete strangers.

How the future would pan out, how the child would grow, and how the child would be crushed after hearing that they were not born out of love but of a despicable act.

She simply _didn't _know.

'_Why does it feel like I'm trying to convince myself?'_

Tiamat gave a slight shake to her head. This wasn't the time for some self-reflection. She couldn't just leave Tsuare be _knowing_ that the girl was about to make a huge mistake.

"What about a deal?" this would be her last offer.

Tsuare wiped away her tears, "A-A deal?"

"Yes," Tiamat turned around to look at the naive girl's face—filled with confusion and uncertainty—while her own was filled with a bitter spite, "If I manage to find your sister, abort it. Because then you won't be alone, **right**?"

"T-Lady Tiamat?"

"You said that your baby is all you have left, hmm? But you still have your sister. I'll find her and bring her to you. But in exchange, you have to abort the baby. Do you understand?"

"Why…"

"_Do you understand?_" Tiamat repeated, a little bit louder than necessary.

"I… I," Tsuare stammered. Everything was happening too quickly. "I'll think about it."

Tiamat opened the door, taking one step out before she stopped and turned her head back at the girl, "That's all I need you to do."

The Dragoness closed the door behind her with a sigh and leaned against it, slumping all the way down to the ground.

'_That's all__** I**__ need to do.'_

w(°ｏ°)w

A couple of days had passed since Lady Tiamat's frightening outburst.

Tsuare was still staying under her care. Her meals were delivered to her room three times a day, and the beautiful golden haired maid would even give her some mouth-watering snacks from time to time. If she asked to go out and take a walk, the maid would allow her.

She was still being treated like a guest despite her rudeness to Lady Tiamat. Perhaps she should've agreed with the crimson-haired lady. After all, who was she to defy the one who had saved her life?

But Tsuare knew she would regret it if she gave in to Lady Tiamat.

Speaking of her benefactor, whenever she asked the beautiful maid about Lady Tiamat's whereabouts, she would always reply with: "My Lady is busy," or "Lady Tiamat has an appointment," or "She is not here."

Tsuare didn't miss the cold edge in the maid's voice.

She sighed as she walked yet another circle around the garden fountain. It was beautiful, but the only flowers that grew were the wildflowers that were left untended under the shade of the bushes.

'_What if Lady Tiamat is avoiding me…?'_

She felt terrible for offending her savior.

With such a cloud hanging over her, Tsuare circled around the garden for a bit longer before she walked back towards the house where the golden haired maid was watching from afar. Her poised form and her straight back with her folded arms made for a beautiful yet intimidating image.

The maid—Solution-san, Tsuare had learned her name from the serious butler—opened the door for her.

"Thank you, Solution-san. I think I'm going to go back to my room," Tsuare told the maid. The beautiful maid barely nodded in acknowledgement, her eyes full of an all-consuming apathy.

Tsuare uncomfortably looked down at her feet as she walked inside the mansion. She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but the maid seemed to be a lot more passive aggressive ever since Lady Tiamat's outburst.

She shuffled off to her room, Solution watching her from the corner of her eye. Right as she was about to reach her door, Solution spoke. Tsuare flinched.

"Human. I do not know nor care how you have offended Lady Tiamat, but I recommend that you tread more carefully in the future," Solution began to very conspicuously clean one of her knives, "I hope you take heed of my words, _human._"

Solution spun her knives and smoothly holstered them at her hips before walking down the hall opposite to Tsuare's room. "In the meanwhile, Lady Tiamat has told us to accomodate you. Please call out for me if there's anything you need."

"Y-Yes… Thank you, Solution-san," Tsuare nervously bowed before quickly ducking into her room. Once she closed the door behind her, she jumped straight onto the comfy bed.

'_Scary.' _Although she understood that the blonde maid only meant well, she couldn't help but feel a cold shiver in her presence.

Tsuare sighed into the pillow. These nice people had saved her, were taking care of her, even when she had obviously offended their master, and she _still _had the nerve to complain?

She lifted her head a tad to catch a glimpse of the sunlight streaming in from the window.

"It's a nice day outside…"

w(°ｏ°)w

"It's the Silver Priestess!"

"Welcome back, Priestess-sama!"

"Feel free to come grab some fruits from me anytime you want!"

"Thank you for the offer," Tiamat strained a smile, "But I have to head to the Guild. I'll definitely come get some later though!"

"Did you hear that?!" the stall vendor boasted to everyone around him, "The Silver Priestess said that she loved my fruits!"

'_I didn't say that though…' _Tiamat sweatdropped. Ever since she and Taki had flown back to E-Rantel from the Capital, the townspeople had been mobbing her with praise and gifts. As a result, she was forced to wade through the crowd all the way from the gates to the guildhouse.

"Thank you, but please excuse me," she carefully nudged a young woman a bit to the side, "Ah, careful there!" Tiamat almost tripped as she nearly stepped on a small child playing on the ground. "Excuse me, coming through," she slipped past two men and finally saw the blessed sight of the Guild's front entrance.

Tiamat let out a relieved sigh and opened the doors.

"The Saint of E-Rantel!"

"Priestess-sama!"

"Welcome back, Priestess-sama!"

Tiamat almost groaned as she was bombarded by yet more cheers. "Hello everyone!" she politely waved and greeted with a picture perfect smile.

The desperate Dragoness was almost to the receptionist until she heard yet another person call her from behind. "Hannah-sama! Hannah-sama!"

This time she did groan, albeit inaudibly, closing her eyes and forcing on a smile before turning around, "Yes, what is it?"

Her eyes widened once she saw who had been calling out her name, "Antonios-san?"

"Yes!" he snapped to attention much in the way Tiamat imagined soldiers would, "You've finally come back!"

"Antonios-san," Tiamat grinned, "It hasn't even been a full month since I've last come."

"Still," the adventurer moved his arm in a sweeping motion across the whole room, "Everyone here has missed you."

Tiamat looked at all the clearly excited and happy adventurers. She looked down at her hands as she was hit by a twinge of shame.

'_I didn't realize they were looking forward to seeing me this much…'_

Tiamat bowed her head low, her silver locks cascading over her face,"Thank you, that was very kind of all of you. I'll make sure to visit more often."

But before Tiamat could turn towards the receptionist, Antonios was already asking another set of questions.

"Where have you been, Hannah-sama? I heard you got escorted to the Capital? What does the King's castle look like? Is it true that you were personally escorted by Gazef-sama himself? What about—OUCH!"

"Oi, Antonios!" Borg had been standing quietly at his side and finally decided to bonk the idiot's head when he saw the strained smile on the Priestess's lips, "Stop bothering the Priestess, we've got a quest to do!"

"Cranky old geezer… "

While Antonios was grumbling, Borg apologized on his teammate's behalf, "I'm sorry for his behaviour, Hannah-sama. Please continue about your day."

"I don't mind at all," she smiled at the sight, "Goodluck on your quest. I hope I can join you guys again someday," Tiamat waved while Borg dragged Antonios away by the collar of his neck.

"Hannah-samaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa—" Antonios whined in tears, as if he was a child being dragged away from his favorite toy.

Tiamat stifled a giggle. Seeing Antonios being dragged away like that was pitiful but hilarious nonetheless. She resolved to exchange more than just a bit of pleasantry in the future.

"By the way, Borg-san…" Tiamat fluidly raised her arms to stop the man's long stride, "What kind of mission is your team taking this time?"

"It's a missing person's quest, Hannah-sama!" Antonios answered quickly as Borg was just opening his mouth to speak, "Why? Why? Would you like to join us?"

Antonios's eyes sparkled like sunlight shining on clear water. His expression was so open and honest that Tiamat couldn't help but to falter for a fraction of a second. It was crystal clear that he was already expecting her to join again.

However, Tiamat's mind latched onto something else Antonios had said, "Missing person quest? People can put up requests to find a missing person as well?"

"Yeap! Adventurer's gotta do what Adventurers gotta do, right?" Antonios smiled brightly.

"I see!" Tiamat clapped her hands together. She never thought she would find a solution to her problem this quickly. "Thank you Antonios-san! I didn't consider this as an option. Good luck on your quest, once again," she said cheerfully, this time truly waving them goodbye.

"Eh? That's it? I thought you want to talk to me mor—"

"We. Have. A. Quest. Remember? _Hmmm?_" Borg stared at Antonios so intensely that he couldn't help but to look away.

"Y-Yes…"

"See you later, Hannah-sama. I'm sorry that I have to cut this conversation short," Borg apologized one more time.

"It's alright, please take care."

With that, Borg dragged Antonios out of the Guild and all of a sudden, the quiet atmosphere that was there before had turned lively. Apparently, the rest of the Adventurers had been watching their conversation so intently that as soon as the boisterous Antonios had left, they immediately began to excitedly chat to each other.

They were gravitated towards something extraordinary, and the more they were exposed to it, the more they wanted to learn about it.

Tiamat knew that people would lose interest in her soon enough. After all, people would always find something else to capture their attention. This time it just happened to be her and Ainz.

Suddenly, she was instantly reminded of the meeting that she had with Blue Rose.

"_They said you eloped with the Black Warrior Momon."_

Tiamat stared at the floor, embarrassment flooding through her at the memory.

'_Waaah, what's up with that rumour?!'_

She wanted to retreat to her room back in Nazarick and lock herself in for the next century. Or perhaps she could ask Yuri to help her dig a hole so she could hide in there and die of shame.

A man who saw the fabled Priestess just idly standing in place decided to muster up his courage and ask if she wanted to come and join his team. Surely, the kind Priestess would give him and his comrades a chance. And even if he was rejected, he would be rejected by a beautiful woman, so there was no way it could be _that_ bad.

"Priestess-sama, we couldn't help but to overhear your conversation with the Hissing Vipers. Perhaps if you are interested, we could take a quest together…"

He jolted back in surprise when he saw the gentle flush of pink that had arisen in her cheeks. At that moment, the ever-unperturbed Adamantite hero looked vulnerable. The man couldn't help but to hold his breath. It was as if he saw something he wasn't meant to see.

Tiamat looked at him, her cheeks still dusted with a faint red,, "A-Ah...I'm sorry, my mind was somewhere else, you were saying?"

"N-N-N-Nothing! E-E-Excuse me!"

The dragoness looked at the man running away from her, "What's with him?"

"Hannah-sama?" the receptionist called out her name.

"Yes?"

"It's a surprise to see you again in E-Rantel, Hannah-sama. It has only been a week since Gazef-dono had escorted you to the Capital."

It was obvious even to Tiamat that the receptionist was fishing for something juicy to gossip about.

Deciding to not satisfy the woman's curiosity, Tiamat just smiled and nodded, "Actually, I came to E-Rantel because there's something I need from the guild."

"Of course Hannah-sama, we'll be glad to help."

"I want to post a quest to find a missing person."

"A missing person?"

"Yes."

Seeing how it was an Adamantine Adventurer that had issued the request, the guild's receptionist became serious and quickly went to work, "Understood. Please wait in the waiting room while we sort things out. "

Tiamat nodded and walked into the usual waiting room with the receptionist leading the way. As soon as she left her post, another receptionist with the same uniform took her place.

"Please make yourself comfortable, Hannah-sama. Shall I serve some tea while you wait?" the receptionist politely asked.

"Ah, no thank you. There's a lot of people waiting for you."

"I don't mind, Hannah-sama," she said with a smile, "I'll be back soon enough."

Tiamat nodded, letting the woman do what she wanted. She knew that she should be wary especially since the tea that had been served to her the first time at the guild by the guildmaster was laced with a charm potion. It proved to be utterly useless against her high resistance stat, but the fact that the guild had tried was bad enough.

As the receptionist closed the door behind her, Tiamat sighed, the muscles on her face relaxing.

"Finally…" Tiamat moaned, "Having a lot of eyes on you can be embarrassing sometimes. Honestly, I could feel their stares burning a hole in my back."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a humanoid spider revealed itself on the ceiling.

"Then shall I eradicate them?"

"Shroud…"

"But they dare burn the Supreme Being! I shall be swift, My Lady!"

"It's a metaphor," Tiamat explained calmly, "And besides, if I let you have your way, the whole city would die by your hands alone."

She instantly regretted what she had just said. Judging from the spider's personality, his next words were going to be…

"That's a splendid idea, My Lady!" Shroud happily exclaimed, "As expected of a Supreme Being!"

"A No is a No, Shroud," Tiamat said firmly, "They didn't mean any harm after all."

She could sense the arachnid's dejection all the way from her sofa.

Out of curiosity, she took a quick glance at the ceiling. The assassin looked like a dejected whimpering puppy. A deadly, murderous puppy, but a puppy nonetheless.

His legs were all folded in, and his head was hung low in shame. "Forgive me, My Lady…"

Tiamat giggled. She definitely had the most adorable assassin in the world.

"So no slashing?"

"No slashing people today, Shroud."

The dragoness could see his entire form droop in disgrace.

'_Cute,' _she thought to herself.

And so Tiamat continued to wait in a comfortable silence, looking out the window every now and then. Even now when she was happy, devilish thoughts continued plaguing her mind.

Why was she even doing all this stuff for someone she only met a few days ago?

'_Isn't it obvious? You know what it feels like to be in that kind of situation. You are __**helping**__ her.'_

But why? Was it because they were both met with the same circumstances?

'_Yes.'_

Was it because she saw herself in Tsuare?

'_The perfect mirror.'_

Then why was that girl so headstrong? How was she able to make such a difficult decision without any hesitation?

'_Because you were a __**coward**__.'_

Tiamat flinched. Shroud, noticing this, immediately questioned her.

"What's wrong, My Lady?"

Yet his question fell on deaf ears.

A coward? She repeated those words in her heart. Was she really? Was she a coward for choosing her own happiness over her unborn child?

She knew without a shadow of doubt that she would not have gone through with the pregnancy from the beginning. She had zero desire to have a baby, and she wanted to be pregnant even less. Especially under those kinds of circumstances.

Then why was she _still_ regretting it?

"My Lady?" Shroud asked once again.

"Just leave me be," Tiamat bitterly whispered, "Maybe everything wouldn't be so fucked up if I was dead…"

Shroud abruptly jumped from the ceiling to the top of the coffee table. Tiamat was so shocked at the sudden movement that it drew her attention away from her own poisonous thoughts.

"My Lady, talking about death like that…" the spider hesitantly started, "Forgive me for my impudence, but… I dislike hearing such things."

'_Ah, that was an inconsiderate thing to say in front of him…'_

The fact that Albedo had the intuition to understand that they were abandoned meant that the rest of the denizens of Nazarick had that capacity as well.

She wished she could've done more to keep Ainz Ooal Gown together. But who was she to worry about the problems of others when she couldn't even straighten out her own life?

Her thoughts drifted back to the Floor Guardians. To know that the people who created them had walked away without knowing why would drive anyone insane. Was it because they weren't good enough? Not strong enough? Not full of wisdom, intelligence, and cunning?

These questions would stalk the back of their minds for a long, long time. Their pain too, would ache deep in their hearts for maybe their entire lives.

Tiamat grabbed the hands of the assassin with all the gentleness she could muster, "I'm sorry, Shroud," looking him in the eye, "I… it was just a joke. I didn't mean it."

The assassin nodded after hearing the Supreme Being's reassurance and returned to his place on the ceiling.

A few seconds later, three quick knocks came from the door. Tiamat jolted and looked towards it. Had she really been so distracted that she hadn't even noticed the person come up behind the door? She cursed inwardly. What if they had heard her talking with Shroud?

"Excuse me, Hannah-sama," the receptionist pushed the door with a tray of tea and some biscuits.

"Thank you," Tiamat said with a smile.

"Now," the receptionist sat across from her with a small stack of papers on her lap, presumably documents the guild would need for the quest, "A missing person quest issued by an Adamantine ranked adventurer will usually draw a lot of attention from Adventurers. Is the person you're looking for someone important? Royalty perhaps? Or could it be a noble?"

"I have no idea actually…" Tiamat racked her brain as she tried to extrapolate more details from the little information Tsuare had given her, "Does the status of the missing person actually matter?" she asked out of curiosity.

"Indeed, Hannah-sama. The status of the person in question will determine the rank of the quest. Of course, if it's someone important, the rank of the quest will go up and more capable people would be sent out."

"I see. What if I were to provide a hefty reward?" Tiamat picked at her fingernails , "Surely, even a strong adventurer would look for anyone if they were given enough money. Either way, it doesn't really matter what kind of adventurer is going. My time is limited and I just want this person to be found as soon as possible within these three months."

Abortions were safer during the first trimester of pregnancy; any longer than that and it would endanger Tsuare's life. "I don't care about how much I have to pay either. If you want, you can put up the highest price possible. Money is not an issue."

The receptionist furrowed her eyes. The Priestess's was quite difficult. She wanted to find a missing person of unknown status who needed to be found within a limited amount of time. Usually it would take adventurers a long time to find a missing person since they had to scour the lands.

Well, at least the Priestess was making it easier since she was willing to pay a high sum.

"Understood," the woman in front of Tiamat nodded, "Do you have any details on the person's appearance?"

"No."

The woman's eyes boggled in disbelief, "Excuse me Hannah-sama, but it would take more than three months to find a missing person without any identification. Even the smallest bit of information would be helpful. Is there anything you know about this person?"

Tiamat carefully thought back to the brief conversation she had with Tsuare about her sister. Tsuare had never described what her sister looked like, and so Tiamat shook her head, "Sadly, I only know her name and gender. Perhaps a rough approximation of her age as well. Ah, and she has a sister called Tsuare too."

It was official. The Priestess was asking for something that would be nigh-impossible to complete. Even if the entire Kingdom was given as the reward, there was no way _anybody _would be able to find someone with barely any identification whatsoever. Furthermore, if said person was using a disguise… needless to say, the quest would really become impossible.

Unless…

"Would it be possible to… consult this Tsuare regarding the appearance of her sister?"

Tiamat stiffened. Tsuare was someone who had been affiliated, although unwillingly, with the less savory elements of the city. Getting her involved like this could draw unwanted attention and greatly inconvenience everyone.

"I'm afraid not," with that in mind, Tiamat tilted her head in apology.

'_Yup, this is definitely impossible.'_

But of course, the receptionist kept that to herself as she struggled to keep up her strained smile, "I understand Hannah-sama. Please tell me anything else you know about this missing person."

"I am looking for a girl younger than eighteen with the name Lucia Ninya," Tiamat paused for a moment to think, "An orphan that loves jam."

The receptionist sighed. Today was going to be a long day.

w(°ｏ°)w

Maria let out a long sigh.

Most of her colleagues were already saying their goodbyes as they finished up their shifts, and the number adventurers in the guild were starting to dwindle down as they head back for their inns. Now it was only Maria, a few adventurers, and her stack of paperwork.

All day long she had been sitting at her booth with her paperwork piling higher and higher, especially after a new quest from a famed Adamantine adventurer had come. But she knew that the Guildmaster wouldn't care about the amount of paperwork she had to do or her wrists.

The sound of the clock ticking filled her head, and she could swear it was slowing down, as if to add to her already considerable suffering. She was sitting there alone with a cold cup of tea that the Priestess didn't even bother touching. It wasn't like she put a Charm Potion in there or something.

As she thought about the Priestess, her mind drifted back to the horrendous task at hand.

All she ever wanted at the end of the day was a cold refreshing beer before going to sleep. But sadly, she had to do something important.

Everytime something extraordinary happened, she had to report it to the guildmaster and this was something that she had to report.

Once the last adventurer closed the doors of the guildhall behind him, she sighed and made her way to the guildmaster's office.

Once she was standing in front of Pluton Ainzach's oaken doors, Maria knocked twice, "Pluton-sama. It's me, Maria."

"Come in."

The sunlight that would illuminate the office during the day was gone, replaced with the flickering flames of candles. Regardless of whether it was night or day, there was always the same sense of severity and tension that pervaded the entire room. Even Maria who was used to it could only stare at the wooden floor, unable to look up.

"Have you finished what I have requested?"

"Yes, Pluton-sama."

The old man nodded, "Good, good."

She handed him the stack of paper she had been carrying with her. Pluton lifted the papers on top to the candlelight and carefully read the contents.

"Hannah-sama wants to find someone?" he confirmed again as he scanned the document he had in hand.

"Yes, Pluton-sama."

"Hmm," his eyes lingered on the piece of paper, "Lucia Ninya, an orphan girl, and younger than eighteen…" he skimmed the pages.

Maria stayed quiet.

"That's not very specific isn't it?"

"That is true, Pluton-sama. However, Hannah-sama could not provide any more information regarding the missing person," she tried to explain herself calmly.

Pluton sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "It seems that I have to ask for the Mayor's help this time. You haven't posted anything on the quest board right?"

"Not yet Pluton-sama."

It was so obvious to Maria that the guildmaster was trying his hardest to get into the hero's good graces. Why wouldn't he after making a huge blunder like trying to drug her? The Priestess was so wary that she didn't even take a sip of the tea she had provided for her earlier.

"Good. For now, collect all the information we have about this person called 'Lucia Ninya.' Tomorrow, I'll go to the Mayor for help as well."

"Understood," and with that Maria left the room.

Once he was sure he was all alone inside the dimly lit room, Pluton leaned back against his chair and yawned.

'_Lucia_ _Ninya, Lucia Ninya… Ninya.'_

He couldn't help but wonder why the name _Ninya_ sounded so familiar.

w(°ｏ°)w

After she had finished her business at the guild, Tiamat was yet again blocked by a mass of people eager to get a glimpse of the fabled Saint of E-Rantel. With the help of the kind receptionist, she was guided—well escorted to be exact—to the best inn in E-Rantel to stay for the night.

The Shining Golden Pavilion.

One of the most famous locations in the city as well as the most luxurious inn that was frequently visited by high ranking adventurers and nobles.

When she finally arrived and opened the door, a neat array of the staff members—all clean-shaven and dressed in grey house-jackets—bowed to greet her.

"Welcome to the Shining Golden Pavilion, Hannah-sama," the line of staff members warmly greeted her as she walked through the double doors.

"T-Thank you…" Tiamat stuttered. She knew that there would be a lot of people waiting for her at the entrance from their presence, but she thought it was because they were just curious. Were all rich people hotels like this?.

Tiamat looked around the place.

The floor was tiled in marble that echoed with every step. The crystal chandelier refracted its own light and splashed dancing artifacts of glowing luminescence across the floor. Embroidered silk sofas were tastefully placed around the lobby, giving off an air of comfort and sophistication. Heck, even the twin door handles were a pristine gold. The reception desk was made of amber colored wood and a smooth white granite top. Exquisite paintings hung from the rich, red walls. Tiamat lifted her head and saw that even the ceiling was decorated with painstakingly crafted designs.

Tiamat could only gape at the splendid sight.

'_Am I still in E-Rantel right now?'_

The contrast between the outside and the inside was so apparent that it hurt. It was as if she had landed in a completely different world just by walking into the inn.

An elderly man that looked like the innkeeper had come to greet her at the entrance. "Thank you for your patronage, Hannah-sama. Your room had been prepared. Would you like to have dinner first before you rest for the night?"

"Uhhhhh, what?" Tiamat confusedly asked. She had just arrived without a reservation; there was no way her room had been prepared in advance. Unless the inn had an empty room to spare, but looking at how some people that looked like nobles or very rich merchants were throwing her an envious gaze, she was sure that the inn didn't have much space at the moment.

"Your room has been prepared. Would you like to have dinner first? Our restaurant serves the best and most extravagant dishes cooked by first-class elite chefs with the freshest ingredients preserved by magic. Only a few people have had the privilege to taste the culinary artworks that our chefs have created," the innkeeper elaborated as he subtly boasted.

"Ummm…" Tiamat slowly looked around again. The ornate detailing, the colors put in; every hue from gol to rich wood, completed by the accent colors of the sky and the sea were the perfect compliment to the elegant aesthetic of the inn. Whoever ran the place certainly knew how to beautifully design an interior, or at least employed someone who did.

That was why it scared her.

The rundown inn where she had stayed when she had first arrived in E-Rantel didn't care about aesthetics and only cost her two silver coins a night. So how much money would staying at this place cost?

Furthermore, she had told the receptionist that she would be willing to pay any price in order to find Lucia. Therefore, she had to save up all the money she could for the quest reward because who knew how much they would ask from her? And she _did_ promise that money was not an issue.

'_Me and my big mouth…'_

"Excuse me," she resisted the urge to wipe her forehead as she responded to the inn-keeper. The elderly man came towards her with smooth, confident strides. Tiamat leaned closer to his ear. She took a big gulp, swallowing her saliva before she asked, "How much would it cost?" she whispered.

The inn-keeper raised his eyebrows. Surely someone as high and mighty as the Priestess could afford to stay one night at the Shining Golden Pavilion, the most prestigious inn in E-Rantel.

"I assure you, our prices are not as expensive as it may seem, Hannah-sama," he calmly stated.

Tiamat started to break out in a cold sweat.

This method that they were using… Wasn't it the same as her bakery?

She deliberately wouldn't put the prices of her bread and cookies in plain sight because she knew that if she were to put a number on the board, then people would probably leave the bakery before they would bother tasting anything.

Only regular customers would know how much her products cost, and the publicity that she got from one-time visitors would be put into good use for promoting the bakery.

"You know…" Tiamat's eyes darted towards the door, "On second thought, I think it would probably be better if I just leave. Yeah… That's a good idea," she edged a bit backwards.

The innkeeper gaped at the woman in disbelief.

No one, and absolutely no one, would reject staying at the Shining Golden Pavilion. Moreover, everyone was dying to taste the cooking of the chefs at the restaurant.

So why would the Priestess refuse the very place that all people craved to visit at least once in their entire lifetime?

This wouldn't do! He needed the Priestess to stay in his inn!

"We will offer you the best services in the world, Hannah-sama," the man said and he inwardly grinned. No one would refuse the best service that the inn could provide for them.

But instead, Tiamat looked even more scared.

'_I knew it! This man is a master businessman!'_

She also used a similar method back on Earth on first time customers. Give them free bread to taste and they would later return to the bakery just to buy the taste they craved so much. The devil's trick!

He would pamper her and make her return to this inn again and again and again until she would begin to see staying at the inn as the norm.

Tiamat adamantly shook her head, "I think I'll just stay at the Wooden Horse Inn again. Please excuse me," she slowly backed out the door. Once she made sure that the door was closed, she turned around and ran away.

The innkeeper's jaw dropped. People who had been around to see the exchange began to talk.

"Did she just…"

"There's no way!"

"The Priestess refused to stay at the Shining Golden Pavilion!

And thus a new rumor began to spread once again.

Later in the future, the Wooden Horse Inn would experience exponential growth in customers from the Priestess's regular visits. As a result, it eventually became an establishment catering to even the most elite.

But that was a story for another time.

* * *

**Omake: Shalltear Needs a Hobby**

* * *

"Shalltear."

"..."

Albedo sighed, her elbow propped up on the table as she rested her forehead against her hand. "**Shalltear.**"

"Zzzz… Huh? Wha wuh tha?" the petite Vampire groggily rubbed her bleary eyes. "What do you waaaa—" she covered her mouth with a hand as she stifled a yawn.

Albedo blinked and tightly pursed her lips, patiently waiting for the Vampire to get herself together.

"So, what did you want, gorilla?" Shalltear propped her cheeks against her hands, her eyes narrowing to an adorable squint, "You've been hanging out with me a lot too, arinsu~. What are you up to?"

"Would you believe me if I said I just wanted to spend time with you?" Albedo calmly took a sip from her glass.

The bar went dead silent.

Then all of a sudden, Shalltear burst into laughter, "AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The Succubus's eyes twitched, but she stayed where she was without a word as she waited for the Vampire to stop laughing.

"Aaaaaaa~" Shalltear wiped her eyes, "That was a good joke, arinsu~ So what do you _really _want?"

Albedo sighed again. She had been doing that a lot recently. "What do you usually do in your free time, Shalltear?"

"Haaaaa?" Shalltear pushed her face into the Succubus's. To her credit, Albedo didn't back away but if one looked closely, they would be able to see a hint of exasperation. "Why do you care about what I do, arinsu~?"

Albedo put her palm against Shalltear's forehead and slowly pushed her back to her seat. "It's just a question, lampr—Shalltear."

"Hmmm…" Shalltear scrunched up her eyes at Albedo, lifting a hand to her chin at the same time, "I usually help Aureole manage the teleportation channels and guard the First, Second, and Third Floors. If I'm not doing that, I'm relaxing with my Vampire Brides," Shalltear vigorously nodded her head with no small amount of pride, "Pretty good, right arinsu~?"

Albedo stared at her with deadpan eyes, "So all you do is either stand in place, wander around, or have sex?"

"I-It's not that bad!" Shalltear suddenly stood up from her barstool with a clatter, "I do important stuff too! Lord Ainz and Lady Tiamat told me so!" Shalltear's crimson eyes grew a little watery as she glared furiously at Albedo. "Just because I'm not doing paperwork like _you_ doesn't mean I'm not doing anything important!"

To the Vampire's eternal surprise, Albedo lowered her head with sincere regret, "I'm sorry, Shalltear. I never meant to imply that your work was unimportant by any stretch of the word."

"You better be sorr—! Wait, what?" Shalltear stopped herself mid-sentence as she fully processed what her eternal rival had said, "Did… did you just apologize, arinsu~? To _me_?"

"Yes. Is it really that surprising?" the Succubus tapped the table with a finger, "Anyways—"

"Wow," Shalltear blankly stared at her, "You've changed, arinsu~"

Albedo stopped mid-sentence, closing her mouth as she looked at Shalltear with a rare and sincere gentle gaze, "We should all strive to better ourselves, no?"

To Shalltear's simultaneous dismay and delight, Albedo pulled her into a hug, "I'm sorry for how I treated you before, Shalltear. Can we be friends?"

Shalltear spluttered and blushed as she tore herself away from the Succubus's embrace. To be honest, she didn't know how she felt about this development. On one hand, she was annoyed that her constant rival wanted to get cozy with her. On the other hand, she felt… fuzzy?

"Hmph!" Shalltear crossed her arms and turned her head away with a pout, "Why are you asking something so dumb when you're supposed to be super smart, arinsu~?"

Shalltear opened her eyes a sliver, and her heart fell slightly when she saw the brief look of hurt that flashed across the Succubus's face.

"Of course we're already friends, arinsu~! Why else would I hang out with someone as annoying as you, arinsu~?"

Albedo's eyes immediately lit up. She did her best to hide it and almost succeeded, but Shalltear could tell. The Succubus was no stranger to her after all.

Strangely enough, Shalltear felt a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. And so she let her mouth stretch into the wide grin Nazarick was so familiar with. "Don't get too big-headed though, you hairy virgin gorilla, arinsu~"

Albedo rolled her eyes with a sigh and a smirk. "If you smile like that, your mouth is going to get stuck that way, you know? Whale-mouthed lamprey."

Shalltear kicked her legs back and forth from the high barstool she was sitting on, "And you're going to stay a virgin doing paperwork forever, arinsu~" Shalltear stuck out her tongue, "So, what were you going to say, arinsu~?"

"Hm?" Albedo tilted her head in an unusual moment of confusion, her head still a little fuzzy from Shalltear's earlier declaration, "Ah. Yes, you should find a hobby, Shalltear."

"I do have a hobby," Shalltear chugged her drink like a five-year old drinking soda, "I have lots of sex with my Vampire Brides, arinsu~"

"What I mean," Albedo tried to clarify, "Is some activity that betters yourself through making something that you and others would cherish or improving some skill that can further the glory of Nazarick and bring joy to yourself and others."

"Woah," Shalltear leaned against the countertop, "That was complicated, arinsu…"

The Overseer's eyelids fluttered as she pursed her lips together, "Find some productive activity."

"That easy, arinsu~?" Shalltear interlaced her fingers and rested her chin on top of them.

"For you? I feel like it might be a bit difficult," Albedo teased as she gently pinched Shalltear's nose.

Shalltear swatted the Succubus's hand with a scowl, "Watch it!"

Albedo giggled, "Alright, alright. So, what do you plan to do now?"

The Bloody Valkyrie sank into deep thought, "Maybe… maybe I can cook and bake stuff with Lady Tiamat, arinsu~!" her pale cheeks furiously blushed, "And then, and then I can get close to her and grope he—!"

The unamused Overseer smacked the back of Shalltear's head, "If that's all you're looking to do, you're just going to be wasting Lady Tiamat's time."

"Okay fine, arinsu…" Shalltear grumbled, "I'll take it seriously then, gooooorilla," she stuck her tongue out.

Albedo smiled with closed eyes, the seemingly friendly gesture underlined with a heavy warning, "That's great! I'll make sure to talk to Lady Tiamat about how you're doing later."

Shalltear pouted with squinted eyes as she hopped off the barstool, "Just you watch, you stupid overgrown chimp! I'm going to be the best baker ever, arinsu!" She proudly jabbed her chest with her thumb before marching out of the bar.

The Succubus good-naturedly rolled her eyes.

'_She's actually taking my advice…'_ Albedo couldn't stop a small smile from sticking onto her face despite her impeccable acting skills.

"Albedo-sama?" Sous-Chef tried to get her attention, "Will Shalltear-sama be back to finish her drink?"

Albedo turned her eyes towards Shalltear's unfinished strawberry juice.

"No," she looked back towards the exit where the boisterous Vampire had left just a few moments ago, "I don't think she will."

* * *

"Lady Tiamat!"

"Shalltear?!" the Dragoness shouted over the bustle of the kitchen, putting down her cooking knife as she weaved through the staff, making her way towards Shalltear, "How are you?" she pinched the Vampire's cheeks, "I haven't seen you in so long, aaaaaaa!" Tiamat enveloped the noble Floor Guardian in an all-encompassing hug.

Shalltear shamelessly took this chance to grind herself against Lady Tiamat's chest. "I've—_ahhhn~ _missed you lots too, My Lady~"

Tiamat, oblivious to Shalltear's odd actions, released her from the hug and tilted her head, "So what brings you down to the kitchen, Shalltear? Are you hungry? Do you need something to eat?" Tiamat put her hand on the chibi Vampire's stomach, causing the Guardian to tremble in excitement _even _more, "Your stomach seems kind of empty… Make sure you eat often, okay?"

"Mmmmmm~" the Vampire moaned, clearly in heat, "I want a different kind of food, My Lady, arinsu~"

Tiamat stared at her in confusion, "But you can eat regular food…?"

Shalltear reached up to grab her Lady's twin pillows. Drool was gathering at the edges of her mouth as her hands neared the Promised Land.

That was, until her hands were grabbed by Lady Tiamat.

"Awwww, Shalltear~" the motherly Dragoness tightly hugged Shalltear to her chest, "Did you really come here just to grope me? You're just like a cute widdle widdle baby!" Tiamat cooed as she rubbed the Vampire's head.

"I'm not a baby!" Shalltear lifted her head and stared furiously at Lady Tiamat, blood dripping from her nose. She widened her eyes at the sound of her own outburst and quickly covered her mouth in shame. "I'm sorry, arinsu! I—"

"So cuuuuute!" Tiamat cheerfully grabbed both of Shalltear's cheeks and pulled them around, "As expected, my children are the best!"

Shalltear blankly looked at the Supreme Being's warm smile. Her features wavered as her eyes grew watery, "Uuuuuuu…"

"Oh!" Tiamat worriedly put her hand against Shalltear's forehead, "Are you sick?"

"I can't get sick, My Lady…" Shalltear whined as fat tears fell down her chibi cheeks, "I'm so sorry, uwaaaaa!"

"What for?" Tiamat gently patted her head, patiently waiting for the chibi to recover her senses.

"I came down here because Albedo said I needed a hobby, and I thought baking stuff would be a good one since I would be able to do it with you…" Shalltear rambled, "B-But when I came down here," she sniffled, "All I could think about was groping you! And you love me enough to call me your child too, arinsu…"

"Shalltear," Tiamat warmly caught her attention as she knelt down to look her in the eye, "Thank you for wanting to come down to spend time with me. Even if it's to… grope me, I'm really glad that you thought to come to me first when Albedo gave you that advice," the Dragoness lightly rapped her knuckles against Shalltear's forehead, "So don't worry about it, 'kay?"

The Vampire sniffled again, "'Kay."

"So," Tiamat extended her hand to the Bloody Valkyrie, "Want to do some baking?"

_A Few Hours Later_

"Shalltear."

"Yes, My Lady~?" Shalltear looked up—her eyes big, bright, and hopeful—at her crimson-haired mentor, "Did I do a good job, arinsu~?"

Shalltear put the tray of "food" down on the kitchen island next to her finished pieces.

They were supposed to bake cookies…

Yet Tiamat didn't know what to call the… the… _abomination _Shalltear had made.

Tiamat glanced at her own pieces: round, succulent, chocolatey, and ready to be eaten at any time.

And then her gaze trailed over to Shalltear's _things_.

Instead of round cookies, the baked goods had taken on an irregular shape that was strangely reminiscent of a game that consisted of all cubes that Tiamat used to play. The cookies were charred into black crisps, and smelled like baked iron.

The two were like heaven and earth—no, heaven and hell.

"So, so?" Shalltear excitedly asked Tiamat, her eyes beaming with excitement and pride, "How did I do, My Lady?"

Her eyes positively sparkled with happiness. Tiamat's bottom lip wavered.

She didn't have the heart to tell the adorable Vampire the truth.

"Mmhm, yes, it's amazing Shalltear! Y-You did super w-well! Yay!" Tiamat tried to fake her compliments, but when her sharp nose caught a whiff of Shalltear's cookies, she couldn't help but to gag.

"My Lady?!"

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no," Tiamat repeated over and over, her back hunched over.

"My Lady?" Shalltear was patting the Supreme Being's back, concerned over her strange reaction.

"I—I can't lie. Not in front of those horrific _abominations_," Tiamat began to weep, "Shalltear, I'm sorry, but maybe you should find something else to do."

It was like a sharp arrow had pierced right through her undead heart.

The beautiful image of her baking side by side with Lady Tiamat—with her licking the leftover batter and occasionally groping the Supreme Being—had cracked like a mirror into tiny little pieces, never to be recovered again.

"N-No baking?" Shalltear asked in a small whimper.

Tiamat covered her nose with her sleeves, approached Shalltear and rubbed her back, "I don't think baking is your thing, Shalltear. But it's okay, I still love you even if you're awful at it."

"R-Really My Lady?"

"Really, really."

Shalltear jumped into Tiamat's arms, and the Supreme Being embraced her with open arms.

"Oh, Shalltear?"

Shalltear—who was enjoying the wonderful feeling of her Lady's soft, heavenly bosom— answered in a happy tone, "Yes?"

"Get your hands off my butt."

* * *

Shalltear put her hand on her chin as she walked down the hallway, her eyes focused on the carpet as she tried to think of another potential hobby.

"I swear, I will show that Gorilla that my hobby will further the glory of Nazarick, arinsu!" Shalltear resolutely declared as she shook her fist in the air.

A homunculus maid that had been cleaning the hall gave the Floor Guardian an odd look before shrugging and returning to her sweeping.

"But what am I supposed to do now, since Lady Tiamat rejected me, arinsu….?" Shalltear's shoulders slumped. How was she supposed to find something productive and fun now?

'_It'll be hard to bury myself in Lady Tiamat's warmth now too…' _Shalltear's back was completely slouched over now. She fell face-down onto the hallway carpet and rolled around with absolute disregard for her status as an exalted Floor Guardian.

The maid who had been cleaning could only look on with shock and pity.

"Arrrghhh!" Shalltear clutched her head as she continued rolling back and forth, "What's something useful I can do, arinsu?!"

It was at that moment that a familiar pair of sandals and white hem crossed her vision.

"Shalltear?" Albedo knelt down, putting the stack of papers she had been holding aside, and curiously looked at her, "What are you doing here?"

"Hmph!" Shalltear turned away from her rival, covering her ears with her hands.

"Ahahaha~!" Albedo laughed good-naturedly, "Now I can see why Lady Tiamat tolerates your presence despite your constant harassment," the Overseer lightly poked Shalltear's cheek, "You really are adorable."

"Hmph!" Shalltear tried to swat the Succubus's hand away, "I'm trying to think, so leave me alone you dumbo Gorilla!"

Albedo smiled warmly, picked up her papers, and stood back up, smoothing out her dress as she did so, "In that case, I'll leave you to your thinking then, Shalltear." the Overseer waved and walked away, her back gradually disappearing down the hallway.

"Hmph, I'll show her who's boss, arinsu!" Shalltear brushed her dress off as she picked herself off the ground, "I still don't know what to do though, arinsu…" her lips drooped down again as she was reminded of her plight.

Her gaze wandered to the end of the hallway where the Overseer had left from.

"What if….?" crimson eyes slowly drifted towards the maid, "Hey you, arinsu!"

"Y-Yes, Shalltear-sama!" the homunculus maid snapped to attention. She and her friends had always wondered what it would be like to meet one of the exalted Floor Guardians face to face.

She had never imagined that it would be so frightening.

Knees trembling, the maid fearfully looked down at the petite Vampire and inadvertently recalled how the intimidating Guardian was rolling on the ground throwing a temper tantrum moments earlier.

The tension slowly leaked out of her body, "Is there something I can help you with, Shalltear-sama?" she repeated, far more composed than before.

"Yes. Lead me to Lord Ainz's office now, arinsu~" Shalltear demanded, much like how a child would demand toys from their parents.

"As you wish, Shalltear-sama," the maid put her right hand over her chest as she bowed, "Please follow me."

"Lead the way then, maid," Shalltear proudly marched behind the maid, swinging her arms in wide arcs as she lifted her chin high.

'_I know exactly what to do!'_

The pair walked for a bit before the maid came to a stop before a set of plain wooden doors. To anyone who had at least _some _taste in design, they would be able to recognize the doors as masterpieces despite their subdued appearance.

Of course, Shalltear had no eye for something as silly as design, nor did she even bother to appreciate the door.

Instead, she slammed the doors open with arms outstretched, without having even bothered to knock first.

A very tired Overlord lifted his head from his work. "Shalltear. What are you doing here?"

"I am here to ask you for something, Lord Ainz, arinsu!" Shalltear loudly declared.

Ainz sighed, a long sigh that spoke of many hardships, and dragged his hands down his face, "I see. However Shalltear, could you knock first next time? And could you perhaps open the door gently instead of slamming it open?" Ainz nearly pleaded with the Floor Guardian, his pride as their fath—master the only thing holding him back.

Shalltear immediately fell to the ground on one knee, a picture perfect genuflection, "Yes, Lord Ainz! Please forgive me for my rudeness, arinsu!"

"No, no, no it's okay," Ainz waved a hand regally, "Tell me what you came here to ask, Shalltear."

"Lord Ainz," Shalltear took a deep breath in as she mustered all of her courage and yelled at the top of her lungs, "CAN I WORK FOR YOU?"

Ainz winced. He didn't have eardrums that could be damaged, but the screech threw him off guard regardless.

"Shalltear," Ainz slowly spoke in what he hoped was a calm voice, "You already work for me. You're the Guardian of the Upper Floors of Nazarick after all, don't you know?"

"Y-Yes, but…." the crimson lolita squirmed around, "I was wondering if… if… if…"

"If what, Shalltear?" Ainz patiently asked as he gazed upon her in the same way a parent would to a child who wanted attention.

"If I could help you do paperwork or something, arinsu… " the Vampire's voice trailed off into a small whisper.

'_This has to be a prank. There's no way Tia didn't set her up to do this.'_

"Very well," Ainz decided to humor her, "In that case, do you know anything about what we do in this office?"

"Yes!" Shalltear's eyes immediately brightened up, "Lord Ainz and Lady Tiamat do important things here!"

'_She left out Albedo…' _Ainz observed.

"You're right," the Overlord nodded in acknowledgement, causing the Vampire to preen with pride, "But it is much more complicated than it may appear. Come over here, Shalltear," Ainz waved for Shalltear to stand next to his desk.

The Vampire happily skipped over to Ainz, past his desk, and right onto his lap.

"Ahem," Ainz coughed into his fist.

"What is it, Lord Ainz?" Shalltear curiously looked up at him with worry in her eyes, "Are you sick, arinsu?"

'_I'm a skeleton. I don't get sick…' _Ainz screamed in his head.

"No, Shalltear. I am quite alright," he declared as regally as he could with the small Vampire on his lap, "However, I am worried that you might be uncomfortable in this position. Perhaps it would be better if you pulled up a chair next to me?" Ainz hopefully suggested.

"No, this is perfect, arinsu~ I sit like this with Lady Tiamat all the time too," Shalltear tilted her head back, her face completely straight as she looked right at the Overlord.

'_No way, no way, no way,' _Ainz fought back the urge to pick the lolita up and set her on another chair, _'Wait, why do I feel jealous of Shalltear?'_

Before he could follow that train of thought, Shalltear spoke up again, "So what do I need to do, Lord Ainz, arinsu?"

"A-Ah, yes," Ainz coughed into his fist yet again as he pulled out an extremely simple report regarding the production of Death Knights in Nazarick, "Could you tell me what this report is describing, Shalltear?"

He handed the paper over to a pair of petite and pale hands.

Shalltear squinted her eyes as she scrutinized the report.

"Lord Ainz?"

"Yes, Shalltear?"

"What does this number mean, arinsu?"Shalltear pointed at the '1' near the top of the page.

Ainz sweatdropped. '_There's a description right next to it….' _But being as patient as he was, he kindly responded, "That's reporting how many people can create permanent Death Knights in Nazarick."

"So just one right?" Shalltear pouted as she held the paper up to the light, "I bet that's you, Lord Ainz!"

The Overlord smiled genuinely this time. '_I am beginning to see why Tia enjoys spending so much time with the Floor Guardians… Shalltear is truly adorable.'_

He absentmindedly rubbed her head. '_Regardless of how cute she is though… she's a complete idiot when it comes to something like officework…'_

Suddenly, he felt something very damp on his cloak.

'_What's this?' _Ainz shifted Shalltear around and put a bony finger to his thighs. His finger came away with a clear, sticky fluid.

"Shalltear?"

"_Ahhhn~ _Yes, Lord Ainz?" Shalltear was now shamelessly shifting her hips back and forth against the exasperated Overlord's lap.

'_And she has the audacity to pretend like nothing is happening either. That's it! There's no way I'm going to let her work near me.'_

"I…. do not think that an office job is suitable for you. Perhaps your…. Talents. Yes, your talents would be better applied elsewhere," Ainz put both of his hands on her hips and slowly attempted to lift the Bloody Valkyrie off his lap.

To his dismay, Shalltear latched onto the sides of his cloak with an adamantium tight grip. There was no way he, a mage, would be able to physically force off the Valkyrie.

"Shalltear," Ainz's voice dropped. He was in no mood for her foolishness. "If you do not get off me, then I will have to punish you."

"Yes~ Please punish me Lord Ainz, arinsu~" Shalltear had dropped all attempts at keeping a straight face. Her cheeks were as red as tomatoes, her breath hot and steamy, and her movements only grew more vigorous.

Right as the Eight-Edge Assassins above him were about to make their move, the doors of the office opened, revealing none other than Albedo.

"You brat. I tell you to go find something productive to do, and you try to rape Lord Ainz?" Albedo seethed at Shalltear, "Have you no shame?"

"You're just jealous, arinsu~" Shalltear stuck her tongue out as she crossed her eyes, a thin stream of drool escaping from the edge of her lips, "That I got a chance to do—"

Albedo closed the distance between them in a blink of an eye and tore the lolita off the Overlord's lap, throwing her to the other side of the room. She then turned with a worried expression to the very, very tired skeleton.

"Lord Ainz, are you okay?"

"Ah…." Ainz sighed as he stared at the ceiling, his hand grabbing a towel from his Inventory to wipe off the residual fluid, "I am alright, Albedo. Your assistance could not have come at a better time."

"I apologize for not arriving sooner to prevent the situation from happening," Albedo bowed in remorse, "I will personally assign a maid to keep Shalltear out."

"Stop pretending like I'm not here, arinsu!" Shalltear glared at the Succubus.

"There is no need to go that far," Ainz generously declared, ignoring Shalltear, "However," he directed a scathing gaze at the Vampire, "You will not be working with Tia, Albedo, and I in the office. You have demonstrated a_ complete _lack of self-control and total ineptness when it comes to paperwork," Ainz's crimson eyes softened, "I am sorry Shalltear, but please look elsewhere."

Shalltear sniffled. Ainz panicked.

'_Maybe I was too harsh on her…'_

"Shalltear," his voice as a worried parent, "These doors are always open for you. So feel free to visit whenever you like, okay?"

"Y-Yes, Lord Ainz," Shalltear wiped her eyes as she recomposed herself, "I'm sorry for being so rude, arinsu…"

"We all make mistakes, Shalltear," Ainz gently reassured her from the safety of his desk, "And it is important we strive to avoid them in the future."

"I won't do that in the future then," Shalltear's eyes sparkled with determination, "I promise I'll work hard on it, Lord Ainz, arinsu!" she pounded her chest with a fist.

"Excellent," Ainz nodded, "Now, please continue your search for a hobby."

"Can I stay for a littl—"

"No."

* * *

[And then that Gorilla ruined everything and threw me out like I was a kid!] Shalltear fumed over『Message』. [Right when I was so close too…]

[Is that so, Shalltear-san?] the light giggling of a girl filtered into Shalltear's head.

[Anyways Aureole, I _still _need to find a hobby since Lady Tiamat and Lord Ainz both wanted me to do something else.] Shalltear sat down on one of the cold crypts of the First Floor, her face scrunched up in frustration.

[Hmm, although it is indeed good to have something to do, don't push yourself too hard, Shalltear-sa—Ah, Shizu is requesting access to the Sixth Floor.]

[Okay, arinsu.] Shalltear waved her hand, feeling the familiar sensation of mana being drained out of her, and closed the portal once she confirmed that someone had passed through it. [So anyways, what should I do?]

[Seeing as you're so eager, Shalltear-san, would you like to pay a visit to me? I'll delegate someone else to guard the Guild Staff then.] Shalltear could hear the soft smile of the Youngest Pleiades even through『Message』.

Shalltear shrugged despondently. It wasn't like she had anything to lose at this point anyways. [I'll do that then, arinsu. I'm going to ask Lord Ainz first though.]

[In that case, I'll be looking forward to your presence then, Shalltear-san] With that, Aureole Omega cut off the call.

"Haaaaaa…" Shalltear let out a huge sigh, "Who would've thought finding a hobby would be so hard, arinsu? Anyways, I should probably ask Lord Ainz now… " Shalltear casted another 『Message』.

_Beep Beep _[Shalltear? Is everything going well?] She beamed at the radiant sound of her Lord's voice.

[Yes, everything is okay over here, Lord Ainz~] Shalltear coughed, forcing herself to focus on the issue at hand. [I just wanted to ask if I could go and visit Aureole-san on the Eighth Floor.]

[Rejected.] Ainz flatly turned down her request. Shalltear's shoulders slumped. [The Eighth is far too dangerous, even for you, if something goes wrong.]

She nearly gave up on her search right then and there, but the smug face of that insufferable Gorilla filled her with a strange sense of determination.

And so she talked back. [B-But Lord Ainz… Umm… Aureole-san is helping me find a hobby, arinsu.]

Shalltear waited with baited breath as silence filled the call. After a while, Lord Ainz finally relented. [Very well. A repeat of the last incident would be a little troublesome after all. Find Pestonya and have her take on your duties for the day, Shalltear.]

Shalltear's back straightened up again. [Yes, Lord Ainz! Thank you so much, arinsu!]

[It's no trouble, Shalltear. I wish you and Aureole luck in your… hobby search.] With that remark, he closed the call.

"Okay. Well, I guess I better get going then, arinsu~" Shalltear opened a portal and skipped through it, sending a『Message』to Pestonya as well.

[Pestonya, could you take on my duties for just today, arinsu?]

[As you command, Shalltear-sama, woof. I will contact Aureole-sama immediately, woof.] A _beep _indicated the end of the『Message』.

"Alright, arinsu!" Shalltear pumped her fist, feeling a bit of excitement and trepidation at her first visit to the fabled Death Zone of Nazarick. "To the Eighth Floor!"

As she stepped out of the gate, she was greeted by a hot blast of wind to her face. Shalltear squinted as she looked around the mythical Eighth Floor.

All she saw for miles around was the sight of a vast, dusty wasteland. In the far distance stood a cherry blossom tree of titanic proportions.

'Wow, arinsu…" Shalltear marveled at the scenery, "So this is where Aureole-san lives, huh? Well, I guess I better tell her that I'm here, arinsu~" she casted a 『Message』.

_Beep Beep_

[Aureole-san, I'm here, arinsu~]

[Mmm, just come over to the Cherry Blossom Sanctuary, Shalltear-san. Ah! Also, please be careful as you come over.]

Shalltear lifted her eyebrows in curiosity. [Careful? I'm the strongest Floor Guardian in Nazarick, arinsu!] she loudly bragged, [What's there to be careful of?]

[I have no doubt that you're very strong, Shalltear-san.] Aureole calmly explained. [However, there are entities on this Floor that can be… frightening.]

Shalltear hemmed and hawed for a moment before deciding to trust her colleague. [Okay, I'll be careful then, arinsu~]

[I look forward to your presence then, Shalltear-san.] A _beep _indicated the end of the call.

"Hmmm, arinsu," Shalltear looked at the giant tree in the distance, "I guess I should get going then."

The Vampire took off in a burst of supersonic speed, leaving a massive cloud of dust and wind in her wake.

'_This isn't as frightening as I thought it was going to be, arinsu~' _she thought as she continued to zip towards the Sanctuary.

Suddenly, Shalltear felt a chill go down her spine. She slammed her heels against the ground, skidding to a stop, as she quickly turned her head back and forth.

"What was that, arinsu?" she muttered under her breath, "Weird…"

A loud roar shattered her composure. Shalltear quickly zoomed off, faster than before, towards the Sephiroth Tree.

'_Shit, is that one of the monsters Aureole-san was talking about? It must be super strong if it was part of the group that killed all of the intruders in the raid, arinsu…'_

Frankly speaking, she had no desire to squabble with such a being.

"Ah!" Shalltear perked up as she noticed the Tree looming above her, "Almost there, arinsu~"

She came to a stop right before running into the hallowed gates of the Sanctuary. Shalltear cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, "AUREOLE-SAN! I'M HERE, ARINSU!"

Shalltear stood there and waited. A few seconds later, the gates silently opened, revealing a delicate black-haired miko with a blindfold over her eyes. In one of her pale slender hands rested some kind of pure-white ceremonial staff.

"Shalltear-san!" Aureole smiled, "Please come in."

Shalltear stood there for a moment, staring at her mysterious coworker.

'_So this is what the only human in Nazarick looks like this, huh? She's so cute… I just wanna gobble her up, arinsu~'_

"You can stare at me all you like, Shalltear-san," the Miko smiled in amusement, "But please," she moved to the side and gestured towards the inside of the blessed Sanctuary, "Come in."

Shalltear nodded, taking a tentative step past the gates.

"Oh, I don't bite," Aureole joked as she grabbed the uncertain Vampire's arm and dragged her past the gates, "There's nothing to be afraid of here."

"But what about the monsters you mentioned in the『Message』?" Shalltear took several furtive glances at her surroundings.

"Ah, them?" Aureole put a hand on her chin, "They're all outside of the Sanctuary. Here, it's just you, me, and Victim."

Shalltear let out a sigh she didn't know she had been holding in. '_How shameful… I'm a Floor Guardian and I still get scared by just some sounds, arinsu…' _She jolted as she felt a delicate hand pat her back.

"There's no need to be ashamed of something so small, Shalltear-san," Aureole warmly reassured her, "Anybody would be wary of the Eighth Floor, especially after Lord Ainz prohibited everyone from coming here."

"How did you know what I was thinking, arinsu?" Shalltear asked curiously. Truly, the Eighth Floor was a mystery.

"Just call it… a hunch," Aureole smiled. Shalltear was sure that if Miko wasn't wearing that blindfold, she would've been winking, "Anyways, please make yourself at home, Shalltear-san."

The Vampire obliged, making her way to a long wooden table sitting in front of an immaculate sand garden. She made sure to carefully jump over to the table rather than just walk all over the garden. Even she could tell that someone had put in tremendous amounts of effort to cultivate all the clean lines and concentric rings of the garden.

Aureole smiled yet again upon seeing this before making her to the table as well. '_Albedo-sama, is this a result of you changing as well?'_

Once the two were seated across from one another on cushions, Aureole shook her staff. A moment later, a petite girl with short brown hair and a fox mask that obscured her face silently appeared beside her.

"Could you go prepare some tea for us?" Aureole gently patted her head. The girl nodded, vanishing as quietly as she had appeared.

"Uhhh…" Shalltear hesitated for a second, "Is she a human too? Just curious," she pointed a finger at the empty space the girl was previously occupying.

"Her?" Aureole hummed, "She's a type of demon spirit. It's a bit difficult to explain."

"She looks pretty cute for a demon spirit, arinsu~" Shalltear fidgeted around. She didn't know where to start.

The reason why Shalltear was acting so reserved was because she didn't know anything about the person in front of her aside from the important work she had been doing for Nazarick. Her brides, that Gorilla—Albedo—and even the rest of the Floor Guardians knew how she was like. But somehow, she felt the need to be more professional in front of her coworker, especially after _that_ particular incident.

Her professionality and usefulness to Nazarick was definitely questioned afterwards. Shalltear didn't know what shame felt like before. Now she wanted to avoid such an incidence at all costs.

She wanted to do better. She _had to_.

"She is, isn't she?" Aureole enthusiastically replied, "Ah, speaking of her, here comes the tea."

The fox-masked girl had suddenly appeared again, this time with two cups and a teapot on top of a smooth wooden tray. She carefully laid the tray on the table and bowed before stepping back to Aureole's side.

"Thank you," Aureole serenely nodded to the girl as she poured out two cups of tea for herself and Shalltear, "I think Shalltear-san has something private to talk about, so you can leave us for now." The girl bowed once again before walking past the two and into the depths of the Sanctuary.

"So," Aureole took a sip from the steaming tea, "A hobby?"

"Yeah, arinsu," Shalltear took a sip and made a face, "Bleeeegh! What is this, arinsu? Leaf water?"

"Yes," Aureole swirled her tea around in the cup with a smile, "It is indeed 'leaf water.' You don't have to drink it if you don't want to, Shalltear-san."

"Shalltear," the Vampire firmly responded as she steeled her nerves before taking a shot of tea, "You can just call me Shalltear. We're coworkers after all, arinsu."

Aureole's smile grew even softer, "In that case, please call me Aureole. I would hate to stand on ceremony with you as well, Shalltear."

"Okay then, Aureole," Shalltear put down the teacup, giving up on trying to stomach the leaf water, "So the Gori—Albedo, told me that I should find something to do with my free time, and Lady Tiamat and Lord Ainz both told me that I should find something else to do, arinsu."

"Mmm," Aureole poured out another cup for herself, "I got that much from our conversation earlier. And you're here because you think I can suggest something suitable for you?"

Shalltear sheepishly scratched the back of her head, "You're the only other Guardian I'm close with besides the G—Albedo, arinsu…"

"I see," the Eighth Floor Guardian looked at Shalltear sadly from under her blindfold. Her coworker must have been hiding a ridiculous amount of pressure under her boisterous appearance. The recent mind control stint could only have worsened her state too.

Aureole put her cup down and stood up, "Well, the best way to find a hobby is to try lots of things until you find one that you like. And you've been doing a really good job there, Shalltear," Aureole smiled, "Here. How about this? I'll stick around and find stuff for us to do until you find an activity that you like. What do you say?" Aureole extended a hand to Shalltear.

Shalltear stared at Aureole's hand for a moment before firmly grabbing and shaking it, her eyes full of determination. "Sounds good to me, arinsu!"

"Great!" Aureole clapped her hands together, "I'm going to go grab a bunch of stuff from my room then," she turned around and ran towards the depths of the Sanctuary before suddenly turning around with an impish grin on her face, "Don't go anywhere, alright Shalltear?"

Shalltear looked at her confusedly. Maybe her coworker was as lonely as she was? "Don't worry. I'm staying right here, arinsu~"

For some odd reason, her chest felt really warm. Maybe it was like the kind of warmth she felt when hugging Lady Tiamat or straddling Lord Ainz?

No, Shalltear shook her head. That was a different kind of warmth, one that burned her body with a fierce intensity.

The warmth that she felt now was a lot like the kind she felt when she was around Albedo. Somewhere around where she felt like her heart would be. Kinda fuzzy too.

'_Maybe… another friend?' _Shalltear could only hope. Guarding the First, Second, and Third Floors by herself all day could get awfully lonely.

And so Shalltear distracted herself in such a way as she waited for Aureole's return. After a few more looooong minutes, she finally came out from the door that connected the inner Sanctum to the outer house.

"I'm back!" Aureole cheerfully called out to Shalltear, breaking the Vampire out of her stupor, "It took a while since there was a bunch of stuff I wanted to bring out," she carefully placed a large bundle of items on top of the table.

"Woah, arinsu…" Shalltear poked at the bundle, "What is all of this?"

"A list of prospective hobbies that I've brought out for us to try out," Aureole pulled out a handful of blank scrolls and two large calligraphy brushes, "First, let's try some calligraphy!"

_Thirty Minutes Later… _

"Hmmm…"

"Did I do a great job or what, arinsu?" Shalltear puffed her chest out with pride, not bothering to wipe off the few stray drops of ink that had somehow made their way to her face.

"It's true that everyone has to start somewhere…" Aureole muttered to herself as she stared at the… character her friend had calligraphed. In actuality, it was nothing more than several thick sloppy strokes that had blended together into one big black blob.

'_But this is a bit much…'_

"Let's try something else, Shalltear!" Aureole put away the brushes and the scrolls as she pulled out her shamisen.

_A Few More Moments Later… _

Aureole lowered her shamisen with a sigh, the shrill notes from earlier still ringing in her ears, "Perhaps not singing either then…"

Shalltear's shoulders dropped, "I thought I would be good at singing because Lady Bukubukuchagama is my aunty…"

"It's okay, Shalltear," Aureole patted her newly made friend on the back, "Singing is something that takes a lot of practice after all."

Shalltear slumped over on the table, "Uuuuuu…"

The Cherry Blossom Miko gazed at Shalltear with a sad frown. Surely, there was something she could do for her friend?

'_She likes fighting a lot from what I've heard… So maybe something where she has to move her body a lot…?' _Aureole perked up.

"Shalltear," she picked up her shamisen again.

"Uh huh?" Shalltear's disinterestedly responded, her muffled voice barely heard as her face was buried between her arms and the table.

"I have another idea," the Miko gently strummed the strings with her bachi, causing crystal clear notes to float around in the large room, "Could you move in front of me?"

"Okay, arinsu…" Shalltear slowly got up and moped her way to the center of the room. "What do I do now…?" she listlessly asked Aureole.

"Mmm, just move along to the music, Shalltear," Aureole began playing a slow shōmyō, "You don't have to worry about form or anything. Just focus on the music."

"Oh, okay," Shalltear shuffled her feet along the floor, "I don't know anything about dancing though, arinsu…"

"A good place to start would be to move along to the rhythm is some sort of pattern," Aureole softly murmured to herself before lifting her head up, "Shalltear. For now, move your feet back and forth, and then left to right with the beat of the song. Try to keep your arms at chest level and parallel to it too."

"Like this, arinsu?" Shalltear moved in according to her friend's suggestions. As expected, she moved with awkward steps, unsure of her every action.

'_The mind-control incident really messed her up…' _Aureole gazed at the struggling Vampire with a soft gaze, '_Her movements are surprisingly smooth though, despite being so awkward…'_

"You're doing a good job, Shalltear!" Aureole encouraged as she continued playing her slow somber piece, increasing the tempo by a tad, "The awkwardness goes away with practice."

"Really, arinsu?" Shalltear perked up, "I-I mean, hmph! Of course I can do at least this good, arinsu!"

"I'm looking forward to seeing you improve even more then~" Aureole giggled, switching from strumming to plucking as she played around, "But more importantly," she dramatically paused her playing, "We've found something that you like!" Aureole carefully put her shamisen down before excitedly leaping onto Shalltear.

"W-Waaa!" Shalltear fought to recover her balance from the unexpected hug, "So does that mean I've found a hobby, arinsu?" she asked eagerly.

"Yup!" Aureole got off her back and smiled brightly, "Now just make sure you practice a lot, okay Shalltear?"

"Yeah!" Shalltear fist pumped the air, "Now I can show that G—I mean Albedo who's boss, arinsu!"

"Do remember that you're doing this for yourself most of all, Shalltear," Aureole sagely commented as she bent down to pick up her instrument, "But yes. You are indeed the boss," she stretched her fist out and Shalltear fist-bumped it. "Well!" Aureole put a hand on her hip, "Wanna practice some more?"

"Yes, arinsu!"

And so a few more hours passed for the two: with Aureole gradually expanding the genre of pieces she played as Shalltear grew more and more comfortable with dancing. Laughter filled the Outer Sanctuary as the odd pair enjoyed their time together, until they were both lying on the ground out of breath.

"Ahhhh~" Shalltear took a deep breath in, "That was really fun, arinsu~"

"It was, wasn't it?" Aureole smiled as she stared up at the perpetually bright sky of the Eighth Floor, "Dancing really does suit you. Would you like to come visit again? It's not often that I get to have friends over," Aureole turned her head towards her friend.

"Definitely, arinsu!" Shalltear sat up and vigorously nodded her head, "I'm super glad I asked you for help, arinsu~"

Aureole continued to stare at the sky from under the all-encompassing Sephiroth, her lively beam of happiness receding into a gentle smile.

"Me too, Shalltear. Me too."

* * *

**imaweeaboo: **Hellow everyone, its been a while since we updated. I hope you all enjoyed this quarantine content that we have here [cackled inside the house]. I'm sure the quarantine must be hard on everyone [hey, if you enjoy being inside that's good too], stay strong and stay inside people, please don't be a dum dum. In any case, chapter 30 is done too, and if you like to see it quickly, you all can join the discord server. I won't give you the server link lololol, search for the link in the previous chapter. Gambatte~

**Hackslashbash: Yeah, Tia is kind of a bitch here. But worry not! She'll be served humble pie.**


	30. Chapter 30: Searching For Dust

**Chapter 30: Title**

* * *

Ainz teleported back into his office and brushed off the remaining bits of snow and ice.

He was not having a good day.

Earlier this day, he had Neuronist and Pulcinella visit the prisoners on the Fifth Floor in an attempt to extract some information. To his surprise—or maybe he had anticipated it deep down—the prisoners would die and turn to dust when the two torturers would reach a certain threshold.

'_Anti-Interrogation spells… This does make my job much more difficult,' _Ainz sat back down at his desk and pulled out some notes relevant to the Theocracy situation. Neuronist and Pulcinella were able to get _that _much at least. Not that it was their fault in the slightest.

Ainz began jolting down notes in the quiet of the office. Albedo was taking a break—probably in the Treasury, Ainz suspected—and Ainz was enjoying the solitude of the room as he reviewed what he had written down.

_Spies from Theocracy? (Confirmed) _

_They don't seem to know much, none have come close to Nazarick. The fake base has turned out to be quite useful._

_Why would they be sending spies? Prisoners self-destructed when asked about this under duress. Perhaps test Control Amnesia… Probably won't work._

_Number of spies still unknown. 20 or so have been caught. Of those 20, most are already dead. Can't take further steps until we circumvent the interrogation spell. Look into this._

_All of these have happened sometime after the Shalltear incident. It seems reasonable for them to look into it considering Tia firebombed one of their cities._

Ainz put down his notes and sighed. Tia's rashness was proving to be quite troublesome.

'_Well, it could be a lot worse… She could be dead,' _Ainz stiffened with anger at the thought. He would not let something like the Mind-Control incident happen _ever _again.

"Haaaa…" Ainz tiredly stared at the oaken grandfather clock standing next to the wall of his office. The hands of the clock moved ever so slowly as the hour hand creeped towards '2.'

He waited until the hand finally reached '2' before getting up from his seat with a sigh and a mumble, "I probably shouldn't keep Pandora's Actor waiting. He did say that he managed to figure something out about keeping some of my Undead summons around with the spells I've given him…"

Despite this tremendous breakthrough, Ainz couldn't bring himself to feel very excited. '_Perhaps I should have told Tia about what I've been doing?'_

No. Ainz shook his head. Friends covered for each other. And what kind of friend would he be if he let her shoulder her burdens alone?

He—no, all of Nazarick—needed to get stronger.

Steeling his determination, Ainz teleported from the room, the bits of melting ice on the carpet the only evidence he was ever there.

°˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

Tiamat groaned as she rolled off the bed and groaned even harder as her face was given a rough welcome by the wooden floorboards.

"Owwwwww…" she rubbed her nose in sleepy irritation. It didn't hurt so much as it was annoying. She was just about to crawl back under her warm _wonderful _blankets until her head began pounding with a dull pain.

"Fuuuuuuck… "

Occasionally, she would be inflicted with headaches from the mental link she had with her summons. Tiamat wondered—with no small amount of annoyance—if this is what mothers felt like when their children scream in the middle of the night.

Well, it had been a while since she'd gotten to see her babies after all. It was pretty understandable that they would get so worked up.

Still…

Tiamat let out another exhausted groan as she clumsily fumbled around in her Inventory for a『Gate』scroll. She mumbled incoherently as she released the sealed spell, and the swirling rift was just _barely _open when she was suddenly tackled by three squirming, happy, and _loud _baby dragons.

"Let mommy get some more sleep…" Tiamat grumbled. Of course, her babies ignored her and progressed from just squealing to jumping up and down on her while covering her with saliva.

'_Whyyyyyy…?!'_

"I'll play with you kids later," she desperately bargained, "Cooking, visiting Aura, _anything. _Just please let me sleep for a bit," with a few more bribes of treats and her time, they relented and contented themselves with laying down next to and on top of her—occasionally rolling around and making cheerful growls.

Red became her pillow, Chilli was sleeping on top of her, and Pepper was fulfilling his sacred duty as her bolster.

It was a miracle how she and her three dragons could fit on the same bed. Chili's weight comfortably pressed against her like a thick blanket.

'_This turned out to be a pretty good idea…' _Tiamat thought in blissful warmth.

Their body heat enveloped her, and their rumbles became her lullaby.

Tiamat sighed in contentment. Last night, there had been a bunch of weird noises outside her room which had eventually led to her casting a silencing spell around her room. Sadly, she had waited until _realllllly _late to soundproof the room, leading to her current state of exhaustion.

It had sounded a lot like people had been trying to climb into her room via the window. She was also pretty sure that she had heard someone tinkering with her door too. Either way, Shroud had quickly resolved both incidents. And so, she was now making up for all that lost sleep.

Right as the bizarre group were slowly drifting into the land of dreams, someone began knocking loudly on the door. The four dragons woke up with a hiss as they were wrenched out of blissful silence.

"Lady Hannah, someone's looking for you outside," a man's—the innkeeper—voice accompanied the knocks that came from the door.

"Ughhh…" Tiamat moaned in pain, sleep still weighing heavily on her eyelids, and groggily responded, "Who…?"

"Lady Hannah," the man repeated as he knocked again.

"What is it?" Tiamat whined.

"Lady Hannah, please open up. It's urgent," the man knocked once again.

"I know, what the fuck do you want?!" Tiamat yelled, fueled by sleep-deprived rage.

"My Lady," Shroud interjected, "I don't think the human can hear you. You put a silencing ward around the room last night."

Another three knocks at the door, "Oi Little Lady, open up!"

"Ah, that's right…" memories of the insufferable noises slowly resurfaced. She gently pushed Chilli off her and sat up, stretching upwards with a yawn before dispelling the silencing ward, "What is it?" she asked once again, this time, without the soundproofing.

She could practically feel the relief that was oozing from the man. "You finally responded, Little Lady! Someone is looking for you," he responded.

"I know, I heard you the first time," she stretched her arms across her chest, chasing the sleepiness away, "Who was it?"

"It was the Guildmaster," the innkeeper replied promptly.

'_The Guildmaster?'_ she thought to herself, _'Why is he looking for me?'_

Her mind immediately began calculating the odds of the Guildmaster pulling another scheme like the charm potion one. Was it another trick of his? Or perhaps an important quest?

'_If it's a quest, then there's no way the Guildmaster would personally come here to approach me,' _Tiamat mulled, hunched over with her chin resting on her fist.

'_Eh,' _she shrugged, '_Doesn't matter anyways.'_

Besides, she knew she wasn't going by herself this time. Tiamat looked at Shroud who was staring a hole through the wooden door with his immense killing intent.

Tiamat smiled awkwardly. Maybe he was angry about losing sleep too? He really did look pretty angry though.

"Give me a few minutes and I'll be right out," Tiamat stifled another yawn as she responded to the innkeeper outside her room.

Once the heavy footsteps began walking away from the room, Shroud finally turned to Tiamat, "My Lady, can I cut out that man's tongu—"

Even before Shroud could finish his sentence, Tiamat already replied with a bright smile, "Nope."

The spider flinched in dejection.

"Don't be too disappointed now," Tiamat nonchalantly patted his back, "There'll always be more chances in the future."

The spider immediately cheered up, his whole body trembling with happiness. Tiamat giggled at the sight before asking, "For now, could you turn around for a bit? Gotta change."

"Of course," Shroud dipped his head as he turned his back to his Lady, his back straight as he vigilantly listened for anything that may pose a threat to the Supreme Being. Sadly, all he heard were his Lady's yawns and the sound of fabric falling to the floor. Needless to say, Shroud was very disappointed by the lack of insects to kill.

"Okay Shroud. You can turn around again," Tiamat was once again wearing the dress that usually came with her 'Hannah' persona.

She put her hands on her hips and looked down at Red, Chili, and Pepper who were still sleeping on her bed. "I should probably send them back now… "

And so, after using up yet another『Gate』scroll, Tiamat opened a purple portal and gently deposited her three dragonlings through it. "There. That should do it."

Shroud nodded in agreement. To escort the Supreme Being through this hive of degeneracy was no simple task. His heart pounded with pride at being granted yet another opportunity to prove himself before his almighty goddess.

Blissfully unaware of Shroud's thoughts, Tiamat brushed the wrinkles out of her dress and went down to meet with the Guildmaster.

As she walked down the stairs, she turned her head to a window and noted how the sun was just beginning to rise; the sky a beautiful patchwork of rosy pink and sandy yellow.

'_Makes sense that the inn isn't crowded right now,' _Tiamat thought to herself as she looked around the near-empty lobby. In fact, the Guildmaster was the only one who was sitting at the table, enjoying a warm cup of coffee that was served by the innkeeper.

The gruff man was sitting at one of the chairs that faced the stairs, so as soon as he saw the tip of her shoes, he immediately stood up.

"Hannah-sama," Pluton greeted her with a bow.

"Ainzach-san," Tiamat smiled as she walked towards his table, "What is it that requires my attention so early in the morning?"

"Regarding the request that you've put in yesterday…" Pluton's eyebrows furrowed in distress, "I have to formally apologize to you, Hannah-sama," he dipped into a low bow.

He had experienced the Priestess's wrath first hand, so he knew that the piece of information he had just given wouldn't satisfy her in the slightest. However, there was nothing he could do about it.

"Apologize? Was it too difficult of a request since I didn't have any details of the person I'm looking for?" she tapped her fingers against the rough wooden table.

Pluton gulped, "There is no… easy way to say this, Hannah-sama. So instead of saying it, I believe that it would be better for me to show you."

...

Her shoes skirted around a pile of dead leaves. The place where Pluton was going was apparently in the outer district of the city. Despite that, it still only took less than an hour for the two to arrive.

Tiamat couldn't hide her shock when she finally realized where Pluton was taking her.

A wall of moss-laden bricks stood tall above her as the guards gaped at her from the top of the wall. Behind what seemed to be ancient wrought-iron gates, rows upon rows of crumbling stones stood in various interpretations of upright. Even the trees themselves were hunched over, blocking out the sun itself as if to declare that this place belonged solely to the darkness.

Mold grew over the engravings dedicated to the hallowed dead, and trees were leaning towards the stones, their branches reaching out to each other. The wall that was surrounding the graveyard made it almost seem like it a prison. The gravel paths that weaved through the maze of graves were dirtied by debris and mud.

"Ainzach-san, this is…" Tiamat muttered.

The guildmaster remained deathly silent as he continued onwards.

Tiamat was confused.

This was her first time seeing what a graveyard actually looked like.

On Earth, real estate had become so valuable that even the dead could not be buried without finding the ridiculous amount of money required to rent a spot in the crowded cemeteries. It was something that only the super-rich could afford.

How could a place be so full and empty at the same time? Despite being so full, all of the gravestones seemed untended. Moreover, the stench reminded her of Ainz's Death Knight, the smell of both dirt and death.

She focused back on Ainzach who was walking towards what seemed to be four newly erected tombstones.

"We're here, Hannah-sama," Pluton announced.

"Here?" Tiamat asked, "But you said you were going to show me my quest—"

The warmth from her body abandoned her. It was only yesterday that Tsuare had been talking about her sister and how happy they were.

Her brain spluttered for a moment as she took in the details of the unmanaged tombstone in front of her.

_Lucia Ninya._

Was clearly the name written on the tombstone.

"I apologize, Hannah-sama…" Pluton murmured as he stood next to her.

But Tiamat didn't say anything.

The knowledge had knocked every wisp of air from her lungs, and she stood there struggling to process the truth before her.

Pluton awkwardly shifted his feet in the silence, "Hannah-sama?"

Finally, she took in a deep breath.

"How?" she blankly asked.

As if he was a soldier drilled for answers, Pluton swiftly replied, "She was escorting a client home, and they were ambushed by the dark cult Zurrannon since they wanted to kidnap the client for their devilish means. She, as well as her entire team, was murdered that night."

'_Murdered…' _Tiamat took a sharp intake of breath.

How was she going to tell this to Tsuare?

Her mind instantly thought back to what Tsuare mentioned.

'_Lucia and I… we only had each other to rely on. And life definitely wasn't easy for us either.'_

What was she supposed to tell her…?

Somehow, she could hear Tsuare whispering,_ 'I miss her.'_

She thought that if she could give Tsuare her happiness, she could gain her own as well. If Tsuare could be happy, that meant she could be as well.

But alas, fate was crueler than that.

"Her body was mangled, and by the time we got there the whole place smelled like a slaughterhouse. Thanks to Dark Warrior Momon-sama, the culprit was apprehended. The culprit also—"

"Enough," Tiamat cut Pluton off, not wanting to hear any more of the gruesome details.

Tiamat, Hannah, had grieved so many times. At first it was her family, her world, her everything. It had sneaked up on her quietly and took them away from her in an instant. And then it was her circumstances. The loss of her innocence and any potential future child of hers.

Tsuare was exactly the same.

It was as if the gods, or whatever being that had sent them here in this world had shoved a mirror up in her face to remind her of the past.

Tears began to spill from her helpless eyes onto the newly growing grass atop the fresh grave.

Pluton, who saw how crushed the Saint of E-Rantell was, respectfully turned his eyes away, "I'll leave you be, Hannah-sama. My sincerest condolences…" With that, he left her alone to grieve.

She didn't hear him. Her legs buckled and her knees sunk into the sodden earth.

Shroud glanced around the surroundings. Once he had made sure that there were no insects within earshot, Shroud finally revealed himself, trying to hold back his own tears at his master's sorrow, "My Lady…"

But it was all for nought. There was nothing he could do as he quietly stood next to his weeping Goddess.

°˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

Tiamat didn't know when she had returned to the inn.

Everything was one big blur ever since she had returned from the graveyard.

All she knew was that she had followed Shroud back to the inn they were residing in. The moment they had entered her room, her head was already on the hard pillow of the dinky room.

The innkeeper had asked if she needed anything, but she was simply too tired to respond.

She was too conceited. When she had first provided Tsuare with her ultimatum, she thought it would be a piece of cake to find Tsuare's sister, and as a result, she had completely forgotten how cruel this world could be.

It was very shallow and stupid of her to strike a deal she wasn't guaranteed to fulfill in the first place. Why did she even do that?

'_The baby…'_ her brain reminded her.

Tiamat closed her eyes as she smothered her face with the pillow. That's right, the baby. Tsuare was too naive for her own good, and the girl had a lot more to lose than to gain from birthing it.

Even from before the baby was born, the mother had experienced extreme trauma. The womb which was supposed to be the safest place had been assaulted with shouting, beatings, and dangerous chemicals that the mother ate. The sheer trauma alone could have robbed the baby of their life.

That was not all.

No matter how strong you thought yourself to be or how many times you say that other people's opinion didn't matter, in the end, such words were not absolute. One's status could never be ignored. Moreover with the burden they would have to carry, it was obvious that a society filled with patriarchs would never leave them alone.

Society was a horrible place afterall. The child would be judged by everyone at a glance, and worst of all, the child would be a constant reminder of the trauma.

If only she had considered the full consequences, she would have forced Tsuare to abort the child no matter how much the girl would plead with her. If only she had calculated that…

Then she wouldn't be stuck with such a dilemma on her hands. Tiamat rubbed her temples with her fingers.

"My Lady," Shroud called from the ceiling, causing Tiamat to slowly open her eyes to look at him, "Is there anything you desire? Should I fetch Yuri Alpha?"

"No…" she answered, unenthused.

Tiamat closed her eyes again.

The Dragoness didn't notice, but Shroud was very visibly worried. One of his legs rapped against the wood as he worried over the Supreme Being. It was his first time seeing the ever bright and cheerful Supreme Being upset to the point of tears.

"My Lady," he tried again, "Should I tell Lord Ainz?"

Tiamat opened her mouth as she prepared to tell the Spider to go away. The moment she prepared to unleash her bitter words, however, she paused.

'_Am I really going to take out my frustration on someone who's just looking out for me?' _Tiamat let out a sigh as her heart filled with disgust for herself.

"My Lady?" Shroud asked, worried about her lack of response.

"It's okay Shroud," Tiamat forced a shaky smile, "It would be kinda mean to give more work to Ainz when he has so much work already."

"Understood," Shroud lowered his head, "I apologize, My Lady."

He berated himself for his foolishness. How could he not have considered that Lord Ainz, the leader of Nazarick, would be busy with his own exalted machinations?

He didn't know what happened very well, nor did he know why his Mistress was so upset.

But he did know Anger. He was angry that he was unable to resolve this problem for the Supreme Being. The situation would have turned out completely different if he was as capable as the Floor Guardians perhaps…

"No, Shroud. Why do you have to apologize?" Tiamat smiled weakly.

From the beginning the whole thing was entirely her fault. If she hadn't involved herself with a stranger's life, things wouldn't have turned out this way.

"I'm sure everything will turn out okay, Shroud," she absentmindedly patted his head like one would pet a puppy.

Somehow, she felt like those words were meant for her more than for her bodyguard.

Shroud held his breath and did his best to stay still. He thought that if he moved even just a bit, the Supreme Being would move her hand away.

"My Lady must be correct," Shroud agreed.

With the Supreme Being's words of affirmation, Shroud's heart was instantly put to ease. If a Supreme Being stated that everything would be alright, would it not be so? In fact, would not the world itself bend over to make it so?

He was an assassin whose sole purpose was to protect the Supreme Beings and point his blade at their enemies. He would willingly lay down his life for his Masters.

Yet despite being just a tool, he had received a name and was forgiven. Someone as insignificant as him.

It was just a little, but the quiet assassin's eyes were wet.

°˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°

He was not surprised at all.

Ainz had speculated that the reason the Slane Theocracy was suddenly active near the fake Nazarick after Shalltear's mindwipe was likely because of Tiamat's rash decision to bomb their city. Of course, if one were to think logically, such a strong and influential country would surely find out who had ravaged their city.

It was a wasted effort to keep himself in the dark, so Ainz had decided to send some spies to find out about what the Theocracy was planning.

'_Would one shadow demon be enough?' _he worried.

Ainz knew it would be a risky move since he knew little about them, but he had to find out since the life of his friend and his precious home was at stake.

Tiamat had been severely wounded and low on mana so the only spell she could conjure after her fight with Shalltear was a low level AOE spell that he wouldn't even bother considering.

Yet such a strong country like the Theocracy hadn't been able to defend themselves against it.

He had heard it in passing while he was wandering as the Dark Warrior Momon, but the Theocracy was hell bent on finding the red haired demon that had terrorized their city.

He leaned back in his chair, '_Maybe they're not as strong as people say they are?'_

Regardless, it would be dangerous for him to be careless. Perhaps the Theocracy allowed themselves to be attacked in order to lure him out.

"Albedo," he called out.

Albedo stood up from her desk, tidying up the last bits of scattered reports, "Yes, Lord Ainz?"

"Dispatch two Shadow Demons to the Slane Theocracy. Investigate their capabilities and any trump cards that they may have. Also, I want to know everything they're doing regarding the attack of the red demon. The Shadow Demons are to gather as much information as they can," Ainz tapped a skeletal finger against his desk, "They are not to return if they suspect they are being followed or manipulated in any way."

"Understood."

Albedo was positively brimming with excitement. Her expression had changed from serious to elated, to the point where it looked like her loved one had proposed to her.

They were finally going to punish the fools that dared to raise their hands against Nazarick.

Ainz's next command broke her out of her reverie, "For now, deal with this first. Tell them to bring enough recording devices and divination scrolls. It would be bad if they ran out of supplies behind enemy lines."

"Yes, Lord Ainz!" Albedo threw up a sharp salute.

He looked at her blankly before shaking his head. '_She kind of looked like someone familiar for a moment there…'_

Ainz shook his head of the distracting thought and took a guess at what time the information would arrive. If all went well, then a few weeks would be enough.

He had to admit though, it felt like a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders. Of course he had other things to worry about like the safety of the Shadow Demons, but he had capable subordinates by his side. Which led to his next worry...

"How is Tia?" he asked.

"Lady Tiamat is currently in E-Rantel," Albedo put her hand to her chin as she seemed to be trying to recall something, "I believe she is trying to look for someone, Lord Ainz."

"Looking for someone?" Ainz looked at Albedo in confusion, "Who could there be to look for?"

A shiver ran down his spine as Albedo looked in his eyes with a glint in her own, "Perhaps you should ask her, Lord Ainz."

Ainz looked down at his desk. His and Tia's last interaction was not the best by any stretch of the word. For him to poke his nose in her business so soon… she surely wouldn't appreciate such a thing.

"Ah, Albedo. I think…" he trailed off as he noticed that his trustworthy aide had already used a 『Gate』scroll, "What are you doing?"

"What must be done," Albedo firmly declared as she began pushing her God through the portal, "Please forgive me, Lord Ainz."

"Eh? Eh. EHHHHHHHHH?!"

* * *

**Canon Omake: The Scroll Thief**

* * *

Ainz sighed.

It had been yet another long day of endless paperwork. He had been trying to take more breaks to work on his newly acquired『Spellcrafter』class, but there was just far too much to be done.

"Is something wrong, da—Lord Ainz?" Albedo worriedly asked, cursing herself as she nearly tripped over her words.

Ainz—too tired and preoccupied to notice Albedo's lapse—despondently responded, "Umu, there is much work to be done, is there not, Albedo?"

"Indeed, Lord Ainz," Albedo finished compiling yet another report and added it to Ainz's already towering stack. He barely suppressed a groan of despair, and resigned himself to work on yet another document.

Albedo looked at Ainz with a thoughtful look on her face. "Lord Ainz," the Overlord raised his head from the document, his red eyes barely alive, "Perhaps you should take a break. I mean no offense to your abilities, but I am sure that I can handle the rest of the work for today."

Unseen to Albedo—who could only see his typical stoic facade—Ainz was undergoing a tremendous internal struggle.

'_I can't just force all of my work onto Albedo. That would make me like my shitty boss back on Earth.'_

'_But a break from this endless paperwork…' _Ainz glanced at the still gigantic stack, '_Yeah, no way. I'm sorry Albedo, but please bear with your guildmaster's incompetency!'_

"Perhaps you are right, Albedo," Ainz stroked his chin in a way he hoped was regal, "Are you certain that you can handle all of this paperwork?"

"Please do not worry, Lord Ainz," Albedo smiled as she jokingly flexed a bicep, "I am quite capable when it comes to this sort of thing after all."

"Umu, in that case I shall leave it to you, Albedo," Ainz stood up from his desk and walked out of his office. '_Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!'_

He was about to break out into a dance until he saw the maid who had been cleaning the hallway staring at him with awe. Ainz coughed into his fist.

"Ahem," he gravely spoke, "Keep up the good work."

"Y-Y-Y-Yes, Lord Ainz!" the maid snapped to attention as her eyes sparkled in worshipful admiration. Ainz fought the urge to hide his face.

'_Ahhhhh, I really need a break from this…' _Ainz thought to himself helplessly as he used the 『Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown』to teleport to the Library of Ashurbanipal. Once his surroundings focused back in again, he sat down at his usual table—his stack of reference books in the same places he left them—and sighed in contentment.

"Now, where was I?" he happily mumbled to himself as he opened the bookmarked page of the last book he had been referring to.

Ainz sank into deep thought as he considered the notes before him.

_firepunch:_

_spell-class: ".MultiSpell"_

_name: Fire Punch_

_description: Ignites your fist for a powerful punch._

_cooldown: 50_

_cost:_

_\- mana 45_

_str-cost: "45 mana"_

_spells:_

_\- firepunchBuff_

_\- DELAY 5_

_\- firepunchPassive_

_firepunchBuff:_

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ". "_

_duration: 10_

_firepunchPassive:_

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ".PassiveSpell"_

_triggers:_

_\- givedamage_

_modifiers:_

_\- buffactive firepunchBuff required_

_cancel-default-action: true_

_spells:_

_\- firepunchHit_

_firepunchHit: _

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ".MultiSpell"_

_spells:_

_\- firepunchRemove_

_\- firepunchToss_

_\- firepunchPain_

_\- firepunchCombust_

_firepunchRemove:_

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ". "_

_target-self: true_

_remove:_

_\- "buff:firepunchBuff"_

_firepunchToss:_

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ". "_

_target-players: true_

_horizontal-force: 10_

_vertical-force: 5_

_firepunchPain:_

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ". "_

_damage: 5_

_firepunchCombust:_

_helper-spell: true_

_spell-class: ". "_

_fire-ticks: 80_

_fire-tick-damage: 1_

He pulled up his notes for the necessary supporting functions and muttered under his breath. "Isn't this way too weak?"

Ainz sighed as he rubbed his forehead. He really should've conducted some simple tests regarding the limits of his spellcrafting before investing so much into this project.

'_I suppose failure really is something to learn from… Hopefully, I can still acquire EXP from this.' _Regardless, it still felt awful to have spent so much time on something that would likely not bear fruit. Putting the notes back into the book, Ainz got up and decided to cheer himself up looking through his successful projects.

"Yes, that's right!" he pumped himself up, "Why am I getting so discouraged over one failed project when there's already been countless I have completed?!" Ainz continued pumping himself up as he walked over to the 'Scrolls' section of the Library, "I should see this setback as an opportunity to look deeper into the magic of this world!" he dramatically raised his fist in the air.

"Uhhh, everything good there, Ainz?" a familiar feminine and silvery voice broke him out of his reverie.

Ainz froze in shock as his emotional suppression worked overtime to subdue the cocktail of excitement, shock, and sheer embarrassment. He began coughing in his fist, attempting to cover up his lapse in composure.

"Umu," he looked up at the crimson haired Dragoness, in all her confused and beauti—

'_Not now,' _Ainz scolded himself.

"I am currently taking a break and working on a few side-projects of mine," he skillfully focused his mind back on the conversation at hand, "How about you, Tia? Are you doing well?"

"Yeah!" Tia responded happily, seemingly having forgotten his earlier outburst, "Just looking for some more『Gate』scrolls since I've run out."

"I see, I won't keep you any long—" Ainz paused, "Wait.『Gate』scrolls?"

"Uh huh," Tiamat began looking through the racks of scrolls for the ones related to teleportation, "Ah! Found it!" she cheerfully pulled out her query.

Ainz lowered his gaze and saw that the rack containing 『Gate』scrolls was nearly half-empty.

His jaw dropped open.

"Tia…" he lowered his voice, "How many of these scrolls have you used?"

Tiamat slowly turned around and looked at him with a sheepish gaze, "Uh…. a lot?" she unhelpfully answered.

"Do you not know any teleportation spells?" Ainz fought back the urge to raise his voice, "Even if you don't, surely you don't have to use『Gate』specifically?"

"But I need『Gate』to take other people with me, right?" Tiamat tilted her head in confusion, "And I've had to take Yuri, Pentakrisis, and…" she counted off fingers as her forehead creased in thought, "Lots of other people too," she finally decided.

Ainz grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. "If you're just bringing along a few people or one large entity, there is _absolutely _no need to use『Gate』, you… you…" he stumbled over his words, searching for a suitable term.

"Idiot?" Tiamat provided helpfully.

"Yes. Idiot," Ainz nodded with a sigh, "Did you not take『Greater Teleportation』as one of your spells?"

Tiamat nodded vigorously, "Yup! But doesn't that have a chance of messing up?"

Ainz blanched, "Tia, you are thinking of『Teleportation』. 『Greater Teleportation』does not fail."

For him—someone who had obsessively memorized nearly all of the spells in Yggdrasil—to see someone so _ignorant _of their own spells…

Frankly speaking, it drove him to the depths of despair.

Not noticing Ainz's distress, Tiamat argued back, "Nuh uh! I'm pretty sure my grandpa said that 『Teleportation』or 'Greater whatever' could fail! And he played tons of D&D too!"

"D&D is not Yggdrasil, Tia," Ainz despondently responded as he sluggishly flicked through the dwindling stockpile of『Gate』scrolls, "Also,『Greater Teleportation』was and is one of the most important seventh-tier spells. Seeing as you are capable of casting from the eighth-tier, I am certain that you know this spell."

'_And she wasted all those scrolls too just because she didn't know what her __**own**__ spells did…' _Ainz's inner collector wailed in anguish.

"Oh," Tiamat's shoulders slumped a bit, "I… I didn't know that. I'm sorry, Ainz…"

"It's fine," he waved his hand dismissively, "No point over crying what is already lost. All this means is that it is even more important to find a way to craft high-quality scrolls in this world."

"I'll make sure to use this '『Greater Teleportation』' in the future too," Tiamat added on in a hopeful tone. She hoped her hoarder friend wouldn't be too angry at her.

"Umu. That would be preferable," Ainz stroked his chin, "However…"

Tiamat sweatdropped and began to slowly edge away from Ainz.

"There is still the matter of punishment," Ainz directed his laser-sharp eyes at her, "And I have just the idea."

"P-Paperwork?" Tiamat fearfully asked, "But I'm already busy with a lot of stuff like the business and shippingalsohavingtohandlesomedetailswiththeboutiqueandotherstuff—," she rambled on as she tried to come up with excuses.

"No," Ainz raised a hand, halting her in her tracks, "Using paperwork as punishment is getting a bit stale. I was thinking of having you… help me with some of my personal projects."

"Oh," Tiamat let out an inward sigh of relief as she instantly cheered up again, "I can do that, Ainz-chan!"

"Please don't call me that."

"_Ainz-chan~"_

Ainz slowly shook his head as his eyes flared in excitement.

He was going to have a _lot _of fun testing his newly created spells today.

* * *

**Hackslashbash: Apologies for the late update everyone. I've been busy with Minecraft lately.**

**A/N: MINECRAFT IS TO BLAME ;A;**


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